10 Actors Who Could Play Johnny Cage In Mortal Kombat 2

Warner Bros. recently confirmed, per ScreenRant, that Mortal Kombat 2 is officially in development with writer Jeremy Slater attached to helm the screenplay. Though it wasn’t a hit amongst critics, 2021’s Mortal Kombat was loved by audiences and fans of the video game series. As most Hollywood movies do these days, it hinted that the sequel would introduce a fan-favorite character.

In the Mortal Kombat universe, Johnny Cage is an obnoxious movie star full of one-liners, and he’s his own biggest fan. He has an extensive background in martial arts and demands to do his stunts on movie sets. The character is a parody of modern entitled movie stars, which ironically makes him one of the most exciting characters to cast.

The Miz

While he may not have the acting chops that other actors in the running do, the Miz’s name has been brought up time and again ever since that Johnny Cage tease at the end of 2021’s Mortal Kombat. The wrestler has even thrown his hat in the ring, as the Miz wants to play Johnny Cage more than anybody else.

The casting makes sense, as the wrestler’s on-stage persona matches Cage’s characteristics perfectly. The two are so alike that it’s hardly as if the Miz even needs to change his method of acting. Not only that, but his likeness to the classic Mortal Kombat character is uncanny too.

Channing Tatum

While the Mortal Kombat series isn’t an outright comedy franchise, Johnny Cage will undoubtedly be the source of so many self-aware jokes and one-liners. Channing Tatum isn’t exactly a stranger to self-aware, irreverent, adult comedy, as his role in the 21 Jump Street series is one of his most famous performances, and for good reason.

The former romantic lead proved to audiences in the comedy series that he is lowkey one of the best comedy actors. Not only that, but he can do obnoxious, and he has the build of Cage too. And as Tatum hasn’t led a movie in years, taking on the role of Cage could be the biggest comeback ever.

Donald Glover

Donald Glover has been teased to have a bigger role in two of the biggest franchises ever, only for studios to fail to deliver. The actor appeared in Spider-Man: Homecoming as Miles Morales’ uncle, and he was the best thing about Solo: A Star Wars Story, as he gave an uncanny performance as a young Lando Calrissian.

It’s about time that Glover got a major role in a franchise, as he’s always wasted whenever he crops up. Playing Johnny Cage could change that, and even though Glover doesn’t have the same build as the video-game character, he has the humor, and his role as Troy in Community proved how he can play obnoxious characters.

Nicolas Cage

Nicolas Cage has become such a running gag in the movie industry, so much so that he’ll even be playing an exaggerated version of himself in the upcoming The Unbearable Weight of Massive Talent. While Cage is an incredible Academy Award-winning actor, he has starred in so many movies that are so bad they’re good, and in the role of Johnny Cage, a Hollywood actor who is so full of himself, the jokes write themselves.

There is so much potential for fourth-wall-breaking humor and over-the-top bravado with Cage in the role. No performance will see Cage more uncaged than playing the character in a Mortal Kombat Movie, and the thought of a fatality including bees in some shape or form would be so satisfying.

Joel McHale

Joel McHale has already been playing Johnny Cage to a certain extent for years. The actor is most famous for his role as Jeff Winger in the sitcom Community, the former lawyer who has to redo college and is so obnoxious and full of himself. Not only that, but he’s great at playing characters who are distracted by their dashing good looks too.

The actor is also in great shape and has a sense of humor, so playing Johnny Cage is so fitting. On top of that, McHale may already be well acquainted with the character, as he has a history with the character. The actor voiced Johnny Cage in the direct-to-video Mortal Kombat Legends: Scorpion’s Revenge and its sequel.

Dwayne Johnson

Dwayne Johnson is the biggest actor in the world in more ways than one. The former wrestler is the highest-grossing actor of the 2010s and he’s huge. No other actor can compare to Johnson’s physicality. And while Johnny Cage isn’t as well-built as Johnson, it makes sense to hire the most popular Hollywood actor in the world as the most obnoxious, full of themselves fictional actor in movies.

While the idea of casting Johnson is unpredictable and uninspired, as he’s the star of virtually every movie, it makes so much sense. And it isn’t hard to believe that, given Johnson’s heft, he could take down Goro or Scorpion or any other Mortal Kombat opponent.

Chris Evans

Chris Evans has been building a fascinating profile of cameos lately, whether it’s being jealous of Ryan Reynolds’ use of Captain America’s shield in Free Guy or appearing as a self-obsessed actor in Don’t Look Up. That’s why he’d make a great version of Johnny Cage.

And as he has such a great ability to make fun of himself, it’d be tough to find another actor more willing to play a character that satirizes Hollywood actors than Evans. On top of that, out of all the possible actors who could play Cage, Evans looks the most like him too. If Evans throws on some shades and spits out a rhetorical one-liner, that would be the total embodiment of Johnny Cage.

Rob McElhenney

Few actors are more well-known for one specific character than Rob McElhenney. The actor not only plays Mac in It’s Alway Sunny In Philadelphia, but he created the show too. And in the series, Mac is so self-obsessed and believes he truly is a martial arts expert, when in reality he’s just a dilettante. McElhenney doesn’t have to act exactly like Mac in the role, but he could put a fascinating spin on it.

However, there’s an argument to be made that his Always Sunny co-star, Glen Howerton is just as in the running to play the character too. The actor has showcased how expertly he can act psychotic in a comedic way, but at the same time, he has a great dramatic flare too.

Kumail Nanjiani

Most Recently, Kumail Nanjiano played Kingo in Eternals, and while he’s one of the bravest Eternals characters, he was also a narcissistic Bollywood actor who was self-obsessed. He was so self-obsessed that even though the Eternals is a secret superhero group, he was insistent on filming a documentary about them with him as the lead.

Kingo was the funniest and most interesting character in the movie, but, unfortunately, he was so underused in the 2021 superhero film. But if Nanjiani was introduced in Mortal Kombat 2 as the iconic video game character, he’d have so much more to play with and he wouldn’t have to battle for screentime with other A-list actors either.

Nathan Fillion

Nathan Fillion missed out on Drake in the Uncharted series, as he was a fan-favorite and those fans campaigned heavily to get Fillion playing the iconic PlayStation character. But it could very well be a blessing in disguise, as he could be better suited for a different video game movie.

While Fillion looks the part of Drake, the actor’s charm and charisma would also translate well to Johnny Cage. Fillion’s smirk alone screams “Johnny Cage.” And the actor has proved time again how he can perfectly balance comedy and drama, and he deserves a leading movie role more than almost any other actor at this point.