Mortal Kombat vs. DC Universe was a commercial hit, but some fans of the Midway fighting franchise balked at the less-than-ultraviolent level of violence in the crossover. That likely won't be a concern with the next big Mortal Kombat project, no matter what form it takes.

　　A nearly eight-minute-long teaser for "Mortal Kombat: Rebirth" appeared on YouTube today, showing a new live-action interpretation of the franchise with a handful of famous faces in key roles. Most of the clip takes place in a Deacon City police department interrogation room, where Jackson "Jax" Briggs (played by Michael Jai White of Spawn and Black Dynamite fame) is proposing a deal to a prisoner obscured by shadows.

　　Michael Jai White means business as Jax. The video also gives new interpretations on the Mortal Kombat mythos, providing a suitably violent fight scene and glimpses of Reptile, Baraka, Johnny Cage, Sonya, and Scorpion. The role of Sonya is played by Jeri Ryan (Star Trek: Voyager and Boston Public), while Baraka is given an acrobatic twist by Lateef Crowder (Eddy Gordo in the Tekken movie and the unnamed capoeira fighter from Tony Jaa' s The Protector).

　　The clip doesn't specify whether it's promoting the next Mortal Kombat game or another film, but the brand is in for a reboot in both media. Creator Ed Boon has said he's working on taking Mortal Kombat 9 back to the series' hyperviolent roots, while reports surfaced earlier this year that Warner Bros. had secured a screenwriter for the next film based on the franchise.

　　[UPDATE] Hours after the YouTube video began circulating, Jeri Ryan addressed the teaser on her Twitter account.

　　"It's not a game trailer," the actress said. "Actually was made for the director to sell [Warner Bros.] on his vision for a re-imagined MK film."

　　Ryan added that she did the clip as a favor for a friend, and doesn't know what the studio's reaction to the short was.