The new Street Fighter adaptation could learn a lot from John Wick

The blueprint for success is right there

• With
  
  Pete Wolk
  

• on April 3, 2023 2:05 pm

John Wick: Chapter 4 was one of the biggest box office hits of 2023 as one of Hollywood’s top action franchises continues to build on past wins to lay the foundation for a new era in action storytelling. There are many lessons for Hollywood to learn from the Wick franchise, and there’s a new, exciting opportunity to apply them: Street Fighter returns to your screens.

There’s no confirmation on what exactly Legendary Pictures, the production studio behind the new Dune movies and the recent Godzilla and Kong films, is planning for the franchise, but it has acquired both the film and TV rights to the Street Fighter series. Street Fighter has been adapted several times: First, in the 1994 cult classic film starring Jean-Claude Van Damme, Raul Julia and Ming-Na Wen, and also in 2009 The Legend of Chun-Liseveral animated adaptations and a number of fan films and web series.

A new Street Fighter project will be the latest in a long line of high-profile video game adaptations. HBO’s The last of us just completed his first season in March, The Super Mario Bros. Film premiering this week, Uncharted and Sonic the Hedgehog have seen success at the box office and there are upcoming projects to be adapted Silent Hill, Ghost of Tsushimaand Falloutamong many others.

There is currently no director, but following the John Wick mold, Legendary would be smart to put someone with stunt experience at the helm of the project. Action movies directed by former stunt pros are all the rage, and for good reason: These folks know what makes good action, from choreography and blocking to lighting and editing.

We know Chad Stahelski is more than booked (with a few video game adaptations in there too), but having someone like direct-to-video stars Isaac Florentine or Jesse V. Johnson, or Day shift director JJ Perry (who joins the action in the upcoming Blue beetle), the Obsessions Director Veronica Ngô or any of the litany of hard-working action pros behind the camera could elevate street fighter in the kind of action-oriented work the franchise demands. And he’s not alone John Wick proving that this can work: Netflix saw one of its big hits go this way with Chris Hemsworth Export (and the sequel looks radio), directed by ex-stuntman Sam Hargrave.

Image: Warner Bros. Pictures

This brings us back to the subject of major video game adaptations, and there’s one that any Street Fighter adaptation would do well to avoid: 2021’s Mortal Kombat.

In 2021, Warner Bros released a revival of the Mortal Kombat franchise with Simon McQuoid directing Mortal Kombat. McQuoid, a veteran commercial director making his feature film debut Mortal Kombatwith a screenplay written by Dave Callaham (Wonder woman 1984, Shang-Chi and the Legend of the Ten Rings) and first-time screenwriter Greg Russo. Despite assembling a great cast, including Hiroyuki Sanada and the incredible Joe Taslim, the film was pretty bad. Most of the fight scenes were edited beyond recognition and the film lacked the kinetic energy you need from a Mortal Kombat adjustment. More importantly, it was a Mortal Kombat movie that literally had no Mortal Kombat tournaments. I’m still mad about that part.

Image: New Line Home Video

It pales in comparison to the campy original Mortal Kombatwhich was filled with extravagant, lavish production and costume design, and grand battles that were central to the narrative.

Director Paul WS Anderson had action movie fanatics working with him on the original Mortal Kombat. Jeff Imada (The Bourne Series), Pat E. Johnson (The Karate Kid) … the list goes on (Jesse V. Johnson, JJ Perry and Tony Jaa were also involved, early in their careers). That’s because it’s not enough to just hire great fighters and put them on screen — having actual martial artists playing Chun-Li, Ken, Ryu and the rest is a bare minimum. You need to have people behind the camera and in the editing room who really understand what makes cinematic action sing.

So please, anonymous Street Fighter mod, have some fun with it. Include some street fights! Hire people who are already doing good work in the action business to do the same good work in your film. It can make a difference.

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