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How Karl Urban dealt with the pressure of joining the Mortal Kombat 2 cast
When Karl Urban told his sons that he had been cast as Johnny Cage, they told him "Don't f**k it up."
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Few fighting games have a bigger legacy than Mortal Kombat, so it is natural that Karl Urban felt some pressure when he found out he was joining the cast of Mortal Kombat 2 as the iconic Johnny Cage. In fact, that pressure came before Urban’s casting was even announced, as his two sons had pretty explicit advice for the actor: “Don’t f**k it up.”
As reported by IGN, Karl Urban made the comments during a press conference ahead of the Mortal Kombat 2 premiere. “I definitely felt the pressure,” he explained. “I remember when I got cast, I said to my two sons – who I actually played the game with, which was my first introduction to the world of Mortal Kombat – and I said, ‘Hey guys, I’m going to be Johnny Cage.’ And they were like, ‘Oof… Big fan base. Don’t f**k it up.’”
This isn’t the first time Karl Urban has been cast in a film with a passionate fandom. He’s been in both Lord of the Rings and Star Trek, after all. So he’s learned how to use that nervous energy in a positive way. “So right from the get-go, from my own family, I was like, ‘Oh.’ I felt the pressure. But when you’re in that situation, all you can do is just channel all of your energy away from any of those fears and anxieties and just focus it on the work, focus it on your preparation. And for me, it was a deep dive into the world of martial arts.”
Mortal Kombat 2 is in theaters May 8.
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