Mortal Kombat, WW84, GvK & Justice League HBO Max Numbers Compared In Image

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An image compares the HBO Max opening weekend numbers for Mortal Kombat, Wonder Woman 1984, Godzilla vs. Kong, and Zack Snyder's Justice League. Mortal Kombat is the most recent of these films to hit the streaming service, releasing in the U.S. on April 23. The Simon McQuoid-helmed film centers on former MMA champion Cole Young being drawn into a centuries-old battle to protect the Earthrealm from the evil forces of Outworld led by soul-eating sorcerer Shang Tsung. Properly entering development in 2015, the film was hotly-anticipated by audiences. Initially, Mortal Kombat saw its red band trailer hold the record for the most views before being surpassed by The Suicide Squad.

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Mortal Kombat first hit the big screen in 1995 with Paul W. S. Anderson at the helm, receiving mixed reviews but becoming a smash hit at the box office and garnering a large cult following in the years since. Its success spawned a sequel that was a box office disappointment and a critical disaster, resulting in the threequel being cancelled and the property lying dormant. An attempt at rebooting the franchise first came in 2011, but died in development hell until the Wan-produced effort got underway in 2015.

RELATED: Mortal Kombat 2021 Embraces The Game's Reboot Timeline Over MK's Original

Viewership tracking program Samba TV has revealed in a new image that the opening weekend numbers of Mortal Kombat outpaced those of fellow recent releases Godzilla vs. Kong, Wonder Woman 1984, and Zack Snyder's Justice League. The MonsterVerse crossover drew in 3.6 million viewers over its first five days, the Gal Gadot-led DC Extended Universe sequel brought in 2.2. million, and the Snyder Cut landed 1.8 million over its first four days.

Mortal Kombat was one of a number of big films from Warner Bros. to become part of the studio's same-day theatrical and HBO Max release plan for the year of 2021 while the global pandemic continued to keep theaters closed. But even as vaccines have gone out and theaters are slowly reopening, the streaming platform continues to be lucrative and an interesting way to analyze audience interest in major tentpoles. Godzilla vs. Kong initially proved to be a big indicator of the success for the studio's dual-release plan, not only becoming the third-highest-grossing film of the year but also initially setting the high bar for HBO Max's viewership numbers.

While Mortal Kombat has yet to hit the same box office numbers as Godzilla vs. Kong, it has already proved to be off to a good start as it's grossed $23.3 million domestically and a total of $51 million globally against its $55 million production budget. With audience reception being largely positive to the film and the early numbers proving it to be a hit for the studio, the future is certainly looking bright for the Mortal Kombat franchise. Plus, as the studio looks to return to exclusively theatrical releases next year and the film's cast and crew eager to return for more, it seems safe to say audiences can expect more fatalities in the near future.