Mortal Kombat 2 star reveals key reason for Kano's return

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By

Adam Holmes

&

Ash Crossan

Published May 7, 2026, 7:48 PM EDT

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Kano may have been killed off in 2021’s Mortal Kombat_, but he is officially being resurrected for Mortal Kombat 2.

Despite being initially depicted as a protagonist in Mortal Kombat, Kano soon turned into a villain after awakening his arcana and gaining the ability to shoot laser beams from his scarred eye. Eventually, Sonya Blade kills him in the movie, with no sign that he would return to the films alive after Mortal Kombat's ending. Nevertheless, now he’s back in action for _Mortal Kombat 2 _thanks to the original video games.

In an interview with ScreenRant’s Ash Crossan, Kano actor Josh Lawson recalled how he had “zero idea” that the previous Mortal Kombat movie would be so loved by the fans of the franchise. He even joked about how the positive critical reception towards Kano ranked as “t_he first good reviews_” he’d ever received. Lawson then said the following about his Mortal Kombat journey:

** Josh Lawson: It's like, I just try my best every time, and sometimes it works, sometimes it doesn't. But when the fan response came out, I was like, "Oh my God, it sucks that I died. It's such a bummer." But obviously, behind the scenes, they were like, "He's not dead. Let's get him back." And mercifully, we live in this Mortal Kombat world where it kind of makes sense. There is some allowance for a character to come back. But no, I was so grateful to be able to do it again because I think there's life in the old dog yet.

There’s a scenario where Kano could have been left dead after Sonya delivered that eye-gouging fatality, which resulted in her own arcana awakening and learning to shoot energy blasts from her arms. However, as Lawson pointed out, the Mortal Kombat franchise regularly resurrects characters. So, even as the first movie was being released, there was already talk of bringing Lawson back for the sequel.

The specifics of how Lawson’s Kano is back in play won’t be revealed until audiences are seated to watch Mortal Kombat 2, which will finally debut in theaters on May 8, 2026. That said, he will remain an antagonist in the sequel, though the actor has previously said that Kano’s death altered him. He described his character in the new movie as “Kano 2.0,” and indicated that his allegiances could shift, which is on brand for Kano across multiple projects.

Lawson is the third actor to portray Kano in live action, following Trevor Goddard in the 1995 Mortal Kombat movie, and Darren Shahlavi in the web series Mortal Kombat: Legacy. Kano was one of the introductory characters in the first Mortal Kombat video game, which was released in 1992. After over three decades, he still remains one of its key figures, most recently appearing in 2023’s _Mortal Kombat 1 _game.

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That popularity is clear by the efforts that went into ensuring that Lawson would be brought back to cause trouble as Kano again for Mortal Kombat 2_. Other familiar faces who are back for the sequel include Jessica McNamee as Sonya, Mehcad Brooks as Jax, Lewis Tan as Cole Young, Ludi Lin as Liu Kang, Max Huang as Kung Lao, Radanobu Asano as Shang Tsung, and Hiroyuki Sanada as Scorpion.

In addition to the returning cast, the lineup of new characters includes Adeline Rudolph as Kitana, Tati Gabrielle as Jade, Martyn Ford as Shao Kahn, Desmond Chiam as King Jerrod, and Ana The Nguyen as Queen Sindel. Simon McQuoid, who directed the first film, will also helm Mortal Kombat 2**, and Jeremy Slater wrote the script following Greg Russo and Dave Callaham’s work on Mortal Kombat.

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4/10_

Mortal Kombat II

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Action

Fantasy

Adventure

Release Date**

May 8, 2026

Runtime

116 Minutes

Director

Simon McQuoid

Writers

Jeremy Slater

Producers

E.