The sequel to 2021's Mortal Kombat can fix a major franchise mistake: 1997's Annihilation killing Johnny Cage. The Mortal Kombat reboot has achieved considerable success even though the film's creators elected to omit usual tournament warrior Johnny Cage. Fans of the character may have been disappointed — until an Easter egg at the movie's end hinted that Johnny would be appearing in the sequel. This seems a far better fate for Cage than what happened to him in Mortal Kombat: Annihilation, when he was unceremoniously finished off in the film's opening scene.
Mortal Kombat: Annihilation, the sequel to the 1995 Mortal Kombat, earned a mixed reception (to say the least), but one of the true crimes the film committed was killing Johnny Cage at the very beginning. The plot revolves around the invasion of Earthrealm by the evil residents of Outworld, led by the villainous Shao Kahn. Kahn and his faction of merciless warriors invade during the first scene, and although Raiden, Liu Kang, Sonya Blade, and the other heroes try to stand up to Kahn, their power is no match for this new and terrible adversary.
As a show of force, and to prove to Raiden that he is not to be trifled with, Shao Kahn neutralizes Johnny Cage's flying kick and, without breaking a sweat, snaps the hero's neck. Mortal Kombat: Annihilation carries on without Cage, which feels like an even greater crime than the 2001 reboot not including him at all. Mortal Kombat 2, if it's made, has a much better chance of being a successful sequel — especially if it makes Johnny Cage a major character. All signs point to Cole Young (Lewis Tan) seeking out Johnny Cage in California, which sets Cage up to be an integral member of Earthrealm's champions.
Whether or not Shang Tsung will return as the main villain of a possible Mortal Kombat 2 remains to be seen, but fans are safe to predict that the stakes will be twice as high, and the antagonists twice as dangerous, whenever the new storyline kicks off. That's one reason why a fighter as powerful and important as Johnny Cage will be an essential addition to the heroes' ranks if they are to overcome the latest threat to Eathrealm. Cage, like Sub-Zero, Scorpion, and Kano, originated as a playable fighter in the very first video game of the series. He's a character who sits alongside the other greats at the top of the Mortal Kombat pantheon, which is all the more reason his character should be a lead — and not killed off at the beginning — if he is to be included at all.
Johnny Cage's importance to the franchise is why it makes sense for him to have been saved to be a main character in Mortal Kombat 2. With so many other intriguing characters and important story arcs to cover, there was always a risk, with the direction that the creators wanted to head in, that Johnny Cage might have got lost in the shuffle, shoehorned in, or even worse, killed off at the wrong time, like in Mortal Kombat Annihilation. Hopefully, Johnny Cage will be treated with the respect he deserves in Mortal Kombat 2.