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IGN was lucky enough to have Mortal Kombat’s Ludi Lin in the studio on the same day as the latest Street Fighter trailer released to the public. The Liu Kang actor was happy to film a live reaction to the glimpse at the “rival” series, and shared that the beef between the two fighting game-based film adaptations is overblown.
However, the actor didn’t hold back on his criticism of one person in particular: Andrew Shultz, who plays Dan Hibiki in the upcoming Street Fighter film.
“I know this whole rivalry started with Andrew Shulz,” said Ludi Lin, referencing the 2025 Game Awards, where the comedian claimed that the Mortal Kombat team “only care about money,” while excusing their absence from attending the award show to promote their film.
“We’re not the only game that appreciates your patronage,” Schulz began. “There’s another game out there, they also flew from around the world to be here because they appreciate you. So give it up for the whole cast of Mortal Kombat 2!”
As the audience applauded in anticipation of the Mortal Kombat 2 cast actually coming out onto the stage, Schulz revealed the truth: “I’m just kidding. They didn’t come. They don’t care about you. They only care about money. We care about money AND you. Street Fighter FOREVER!”
Ludi Lin continued: “Andrew Shultz. Just lay off the fans man. That last Game Awards… it’s fine to throw shade on us. I think the fans were excited, if we were there, to have everyone on stage. Just watch out. Don’t make the fans angry.”
The Chinese-Canadian actor is a huge fan of the Street Fighter games, and said that his role in the Black Mirror episode Striking Vipers “was totally an homage to Street Fighter and I think that was closer to Street Fighter than Mortal Kombat.”
Ludi Lin also gave a shout out to Mortal Kombat co-star Mel Jarnson, who has gone on to play Cammy in the upcoming Street Fighter film. “I’m very proud of her.”
“I just hope that they get it right. It’s a fun rivalry and I want to continue it. I’m not one to shy away from competition. I think it can be used in a way that makes both cinematic universes better. And make the fans… we’re going to share a lot of fans and make them both happy.”
We also asked Ludi Lin about the potential for the two series to ever cross over in film form. He answered: “That’s a really interesting question. Now that there’s a pending sale of Warner Bros over to Paramount who’s doing Street Fighter, it’s very possible. It’d be so much fun. But tonally I feel like they’re very different movies. But I don’t know. Let’s just live in this moment for now.”
Capping off the interview, Ludi Lin delivered his verdict on the upcoming Mortal Kombat versus Street Fighter showdown with a perhaps unsurprising pick: “If I’m going to put my money on it, I would bet the house on Mortal Kombat.”
Photo by Frank Micelotta/The Game Awards via Getty Images.
Mat Jones is IGN’s UK Social Producer.
