Mortal Kombat 2 writer reveals the fighter he cut from the script: "I wasn't able to devote enough time to sell him as a character"

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With dozens of champions to choose from across the games, determining which fighters to feature in Mortal Kombat 2 was no easy feat for the beat-em-up sequel's screenwriter, Jeremy Slater. And while many characters were considered, only one almost appeared in the movie, before being cut at the script stage.

"You know, we almost had Tremor in the movie at one point for the Sonya fight, just because I've always liked Tremor and he's got really fun, really cool powers," Slater says during a conversation with GamesRadar+. Tremor, for the unfamiliar, is a ninja with geokinetic powers who can control rocks, metals, and even lava. Fun fact: he's also the second-tallest Mortal Kombat character, behind only Goro.

Tremor was set to square off against Sonya Blade in one of Mortal Kombat 2's first fights, and would have met a grisly end, until Slater realized the character "just wasn't working," replacing the Earth Elemental with Sindel, Kitana's mother, who has been brainwashed by Shao Kahn.

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"We realized we had Sindel already on the table, and she wasn't being used in an exciting enough way, so it was one of those smack my own forehead moments of like, Tremor wasn't working because I wasn't able to devote enough time to sort of sell him as a character. Once we swapped [Tremor] out [for] Sindel, it immediately became more visceral, and there's just more skin in the game. And Sindel's powers were so much fun that it felt like she belonged in that pit of spikes in a way that never felt right with Tremor."

Tremor may only be familiar to Mortal Kombat fans with serious ball-knowledge, as the palette-swapped ninja has only appeared in the mainline games as a DLC character. He first popped up in 2000 spin-off title Mortal Kombat: Special Forces for the PS1.

As for Slater, he's no doubt riding high, as Mortal Kombat 2 is currently one of the highest-rated video game movies ever on Rotten Tomatoes, and is on track for a big weekend at the box office. Flawless victory.

Mortal Kombat 2 is in theaters now. For more, read our Mortal Kombat 2 review, and when you've seen the film dive into our spoiler-filled Mortal Kombat 2 ending explained.

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Jordan FarleyManaging Editor, Entertainment

I'm the Managing Editor, Entertainment here at GamesRadar+, overseeing the site's film and TV coverage. In a previous life as a print dinosaur, I was the Deputy Editor of Total Film magazine, and the news editor at SFX magazine. Fun fact: two of my favourite films released on the same day - Blade Runner and The Thing.

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