Eager Mortal Kombat fans excited to see the new film adaption will have to wait a little longer. The release date has been pushed back, but only by only a week. It will now premiere on April 23 instead of April 16, as reported by IGN. No reason was given for the date change.
For those worried about it being pulled from theaters entirely and releasing straight to HBO Max, fear not. The plan, at least for now, is to still debut on the platform and in theaters. Mortal Kombat is set to stay true to its gory video game origins, not censoring the classic finishing moves players are familiar with.
A few months ago, Warnermedia stated that for 2021 at least, all of its films would be released in theaters and on HBO Max. Disney just announced that Black Widow has been pushed back even further to a summer release still heading to theaters, but adding a Disney+ premiere. Later on, Disney changed its mind, after saying there were no plans to do that.
Of course, the ongoing pandemic and endless theater closures continue to be the trend this year. Moviegoers, no doubt, are getting sick of streaming at home and miss the in-person experience of watching more action-orientated films on the big screen. No matter how big your television is, it just isn't the same atmosphere.
Black Widow's new date also affected many other films from Disney, including Shang-Chi, Free Guy, and The King's Man. Series such as WandaVision and now The Falcon and The Winter Soldier, are thriving on Disney+, along with Zack Synder's Justice League.
Perhaps, some content does better at home, or fans are just eager for something new, it doesn't matter where. One thing many are hopeful for is that this constant change of film releases will stop after 2021.