Warner Bros. Turned Down A Mortal Kombat Movie Featuring Batman & Superman
Starting with the classic "Batman: The Animated Series" and moving through "Superman: The Animated Series" and the "Justice League" films, the DC Animated Universe attracted a fan base that preferred seeing their favorite superheroes with a more comic-accurate feel. Jeremy Adams has some credits among those animated characters with "Batman: Soul of the Dragon" and "Justice League: Warworld." In an interview with Comic Book, Adams revealed he once pitched a crossover with "Mortal Kombat," which he also has a history with.
Adams is the writer behind some of the video game franchise's animated films, including "Mortal Kombat Legends: Scorpion's Revenge," "Mortal Kombat Legends: Snow Blind," and "Mortal Kombat Legends: Battle of the Realms." This led the interviewer to ask if this crossover of talent hinted at a possible movie bringing the two franchises to a head. "I would lower your expectations," he said. "I don't know if they have any plans to do more. I do know that we pitched that a while ago, but it was kind of rebuffed." When the interviewer asked if they hated money, he responded.
"I don't know," Adams said. "I think it would be really cool, though. Trust me, I would love to see a 'DC Mortal Kombat.' That would be super, super cool." Of course, the concept of a crossover isn't new. There is a precedent in the form of a video game that pits the two casts of characters against one another.
The source material provides a solid background
The two franchises came to a head in 2008 when the video game "Mortal Kombat vs. DC Universe" was released on the Xbox 360 and the PlayStation 3. The story follows the universes invading each other and causing them to go toe-to-toe in between cut scenes laying out a storyline from different perspectives. The player has to choose the side of the fight they want to play as, and the others are seen as invaders.
The game incorporates the typical "Mortal Kombat" gameplay with 2D fighting action and cut scenes but also adds an all-new mechanic called the Free-Fall Kombat, where the two characters tumble from one level to another while fighting and building up a power bar. Another new feature enables close-quarter combat and another power bar to fill. While the storyline follows a traditional "Mortal Kombat" template, it could serve as great source material for the two franchises to show up in an animated crossover.
There are multiple DC films and storylines that already feature some of the game's aspects, but the closest is "Justice League: Crisis on Infinite Earths." The storyline of two different versions of the Justice League on different sides of the moral code would work well, with one side being replaced with Liu Kang, Rayden, Scorpion, and Sub Zero. Unfortunately, we may have already seen the closest we will ever get to another "Mortal Kombat" crossover with Batman, Superman, and Wonder Woman.
Injustice is about as close as we will get
Five years after "Mortal Kombat vs. DC Universe" brought the two powerhouses face-to-face, an eerily similar video game hit the market. Instead of a sequel to the game, we got "Injustice: Gods Among Us," a solely DC-focused game using the same studio (NetherRealm) and template as "Mortal Kombat." "Injustice" had a similar storyline to "Justice League: Crisis on Infinite Earths." Where the latter uses a corrupt Justice League that decides to use its powers for organized crime, the former sees Joker getting the best of Superman and manipulating him into killing Lois Lane. This turn of events causes half of the League to rule Earth with an iron fist.
While that isn't anywhere close to the crossover we want to see between these two franchises, it may be as good as we get in the foreseeable future. "Well, I think at the end of the day, I don't know if they're ever going to do anymore," Jeremy Adams said. "I hope they do, and I hope they call me to be involved. That would be great because I really love it."
We will have to wait and see if the studios come together again, but at this point, it is more likely that fans get treated to a live-action "Injustice" storyline featuring Gunniverse characters going up against Snyderverse versions. Seeing David Corenswet go up against Henry Cavill may be just the consolation prize we need if Adams can't write a film version of "Mortal Kombat vs. DC Universe."