Producer James Wan revealed last night on IG that filming is officially underway on Mortal Kombat 2, which has Simon McQuoid returning to the director’s seat from a screenplay by Jeremy Slater (“The Exorcist,” “Moon Knight”).

Martyn Ford (“The Sandman”), Desmond Chiam (“The Falcon and the Winter Soldier”), Ana Thu Nguyen (Suka) and Damon Herriman (House of Wax, The Nightingale) signed on a few weeks ago to play Shao Kahn, Edenian King Jerrod, Queen Sindel, and Netherrealm demon Quan Chi respectively.

It’s interesting to note that Herriman previously voiced the role of Kabal in the 2021 film.

Newcomers to the sequel also include Karl Urban as Johnny Cage, Tati Gabrielle as Jade and Adeline Rudolph as Kitana.

Plot details remain scarce for the sequel, though the new cast additions continue to signal a bigger, bloodier affair packed with fatalities.

In 2021’s Mortal Kombat, ”MMA fighter Cole Young, accustomed to taking a beating for money, is unaware of his heritage—or why Outworld’s Emperor Shang Tsung has sent his best warrior, Sub-Zero, an otherworldly Cryomancer, to hunt Cole down. Fearing for his family’s safety, Cole goes in search of Sonya Blade at the direction of Jax, a Special Forces Major who bears the same strange dragon marking Cole was born with. Soon, he finds himself at the temple of Lord Raiden, an Elder God and the protector of Earthrealm, who grants sanctuary to those who bear the mark. Here, Cole trains with experienced warriors Liu Kang, Kung Lao and rogue mercenary Kano, as he prepares to stand with Earth’s greatest champions against the enemies of Outworld in a high stakes battle for the universe. But will Cole be pushed hard enough to unlock his arcana—the immense power from within his soul—in time to save not only his family, but to stop Outworld once and for all?”

In addition to Tan, returning cast includes Jessica McNamee as Sonya Blade, Josh Lawson as Kano, Tadanobu Asano as Lord Raiden, Mehcad Brooks as Jax, Ludi Lin as Liu Kang, Chin Han as Shang Tsung, Joe Taslim as Bi-Han and Sub-Zero, Hiroyuki Sanada as Hanzo Hasashi and Scorpion, and Max Huang as Kung Lao.

Produced by James Wan, Mortal Kombat pulled in $83.6 million worldwide at the box office beginning on April 23, 2021, right around the time that pandemic vaccines were finally being offered up for the first time. The gory video game adaptation was also watched by 3.8 million households during that weekend, a number no other movie was able to pass on HBO Max.