The latest poster for the Mortal Kombat reboot film offers a look at some of the fan favorites from the game. But, what’s caught the attention of avid followers is the first proper look at Kabal, and it seems like the film has truly honored the original design of the character, with his iconic respirator and Hookswords.
The official Mortal Kombat movie Twitter channel revealed the poster, inviting fans of the series to “choose your fighter.” With Scorpion and Sub-Zero in the lead, the fighters are clearly divided into two teams. The video games pit Champions of Earthrealm against the Outworld champions and the movie appears to be keeping that theme intact. Apart from Kabal, the poster features other main characters Cole Young, Sonya Blade, Jax Briggs, Shang Tsung, and Mileena.
When Warner Bros. first announced the Mortal Kombat reboot, it was confirmed that 12 Kombatants from the games would be making an appearance. Kabal was on that list, but fans were upset when the first trailer dropped because they didn’t get a proper look at him. While many were quick to point out that he appears in a fight scene with Liu Kang, the poster is the first time they get to see his iconic look from the games come to life. This could potentially mean he will have a prominent role in the film, something that fans have been asking for since the first Mortal Kombat trailer was released.
Kabal first appeared in 1995's Mortal Kombat 3 and went on to become a fan favorite. He was one of the toughest Mortal Kombat characters to beat in the games and is shown to constantly shift allegiances. While the newly revealed poster shows him to be on Sub-Zero’s villainous team of Outworld fighters, it remains to be seen if he will be changing sides in the film.
Some keen-eyed fans have already spotted Kabal’s teased death in the trailer at Liu Kang’s hands. One of the shots in the almost three-minute-long trailer shows Liu Kang conjuring a dragon out of the fire, the character’s fatality in the games, which rises before Kabal. Even though he is a popular character, Kabal was never one of the main ones in the game and this has fans wondering if he will be knocked out.
One thing that has fans excited, though, is the fact that Mortal Kombat has officially received an R-rating. This means that the film will be portraying the characters’ fatalities in their true, gory form. So, if Kabal does get defeated, fans can rest assured that watching the fatality will be worth it.
Mortal Kombat will debut in theatres and on HBO Max in the United States on April 16, 2021.
Source: Mortal Kombat Movie/Twitter