The script has been sitting ready since March, yet there’s still no green light — franchise director Simon McQuoid admitted he genuinely doesn’t know if a third film will happen. In an interview with GamesRadar+, he said the project is “still going through its life cycle” and added: “I’m not sure.”
The hesitation comes down to box office numbers. Mortal Kombat 2 pulled in $129.5 million worldwide against an $80 million budget — a soft result by Hollywood standards, the kind of number that usually spells the end of a franchise or at least a long pause before any sequel gets approved.
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Why Streaming Numbers Could Save the Franchise
That’s where the real intrigue lies. On July 24, the film landed on HBO Max and immediately became a smash hit on the platform, topping the global charts and taking the number one spot in 56 countries. Right now, that figure matters more to Warner Bros. than the theatrical haul.
History has already played out this way once. The 2021 Mortal Kombat earned a modest $84 million theatrically on a $55 million budget, but exploded on streaming — and that home-viewing success is exactly what convinced the studio to greenlight a sequel with a bigger budget. If the same logic holds, the second film’s weak box office run won’t necessarily be the end of the road.
Screenwriter Jeremy Slater started working on the third installment back in the fall of 2025 and finished the script in March 2026 — meaning the creative groundwork is fully done and ready to go. With that head start, production could move fast once the studio actually signs off.
What We Know So Far
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There’s still no official announcement for Mortal Kombat 3
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The script is finished, but the final call rests with Warner Bros.
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Theatrical numbers are weak, but HBO Max streaming performance is what really counts
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The first film went through a nearly identical situation — and got a sequel thanks to strong home viewership
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Director Simon McQuoid remains attached to the project but isn’t rushing to confirm a sequel
Fans of the film series should keep an eye on streaming reports rather than box office recaps — those numbers seem to be the argument that will ultimately sway the studio. If Mortal Kombat 2’s HBO Max run keeps performing this well for another few weeks, the odds of an official greenlight go up considerably.
