Director James Wan had an enormous contribution to the success of "Fast and Furious 7." Wan helmed the movie following the death of Paul Walker. The filming was labor-intensive as they have to use computer-generated imagery over Walker's brothers to finish the production. However, "Fast and Furious 8" currently remains without a director as the team is focused on the development process of the screenplay, according to CinemaBlend.
It is not certain yet who between Wan and Justin Lin will continue the street racing action movie series, but what is certain is that Wan will be producing the reboot of the film adaptation of "Mortal Kombat," according to The Tracking Board.
Wan, who also helmed the horror films "The Conjuring" and "Insidious," was brought to the movie to apply his brilliance in giving new life to the once stunted picture.
The report says, "With his dark sensibility, ability to orchestrate action and scares, and a wildly successful financial track record, Wan seems to be the perfect fit for what the studio has described as 'a departure from the mythology,'with' darker, brutally real martial arts.'"
According to Den Of Geek, Wan is currently directing "The Conjuring 2" and is set to helm Warner Bros' "Aquaman" and Sony's "Robotech" afterward, which is why the in-demand director is only taking a producing role for "Mortal Kombat."
Here are five of the things we know so far about the "Mortal Kombat" reboot:
1. Plot
According to The Tracking Board, the story will revolve around a gentle and innocent guy who realizes his potential to fight upon finding himself caught in the middle of a cross-dimensional conflict between combatants from Earth and monsters from the Outworld. He will have to win a martial arts tournament called "Mortal Kombat" to save the world from chaos and total destruction.
2. Writers
Oren Uziel pens the screenplay with "The Expendables" writer, Dave Callaham.
3. History
The upcoming film is based on the popular '90s video game series by Midway Games. It already had two adaptations, "Mortal Kombat" directed by Paul W.S. Anderson in 1995 and a sequel, "Mortal Kombat Annihilation," according to FanSided. The first film earned $122 million worldwide and was the fourth highest grossing video game movie ever, but the sequel did not make even half of its predecessor's earnings, Screen Rant has learned.
4. Release Date
According to Venture Capital Post, the movie was initially set for release in 2015, but the production is pushing it behind and is aiming for a 2016 release instead.
5. Audiences' Expectation
Some of the things viewers want to see are good casting, a different storyline from the first movie, dark tone and more fatalities for the fighting scenes, according to MoviePilot.