Mortal Kombat II's Adeline Rudolph on "honour" of bringing Kitana to life, her upcoming K-Pop thriller and future ambitions

After breakthrough roles in Chilling Adventures of Sabrina and Riverdale, Adeline Rudolph takes on her biggest challenge to date as the iconic Kitana in Mortal Kombat II.

The video game adaptation follows a group of fighters who must defeat the dark force of the tyrannical Shao Kahn, who threatens the very existence of Earthrealm.

Rudolph takes on the role of Kitana, one of the most popular characters in the franchise ever since her debut in the original Mortal Kombat II game in 1993.

Like any beloved franchise and game-to-screen adaptation, there’s a certain level of pressure in nailing a fan-favourite character. It’s something that the casts of The Last of Us, Silent Hill and Five Nights at Freddy’s (to name just a few) are all too aware of but Rudolph remarks that embodying Kitana was an incredible experience. Most importantly, she says, it was an honour to bring the iconic character to life.

As Rudolph was stepping into a world with such a big pre-existing fanbase, she knew it was her duty to dive into the backstory of her character to do her justice.

“I had so much source material to go off of,” she told Radio Times. “I played the games, but more than that, I delved into the lore and [explored] the story and rich history and relationships between all of these characters, which was important when stepping into this new world.

“It was important to understand which realm Kitana comes from. Who is she when she is born? What does she stand for? Who are her people? And where does her moral compass lie? Those were the things I hung onto most when it came to this character.”

Despite the fantasy worlds and exhilarating action of Mortal Kombat II, Rudolph believes that in order to create a real connection with the audience, it's important to show the vulnerability and humanity of the various characters.

“The best way to hopefully do Kitana justice was to be as truthful and as honest as I could be with the character, dive into who she is as a person and then bring her to life in that way. I didn’t want it to feel like a gimmick or mimic anyone else’s performance or try to be Kitana in the video game,” said Rudolph.

“I was looking to portray the interesting and incredible story on a very human level and I was looking to channel that into my performance.”

As well as being inspired by the rich history and lore, Rudolph remarked how welcoming the returning cast of the 2021 movie were, saying that they “held her hand” and helped immerse her and the new cast members into the action-packed Mortal Kombat universe.

The iteration introduces new characters to the screen such as Kitana, and starring alongside Rudolph is The Boys star Karl Urban, who leads the cast as Johnny Cage.

“Karl is awesome. He is the kindest and chillest human being," Rudolph said of working with him. "He is so perfect for Johnny Cage. To be able to work with someone like Karl, who is so professional and so talented and funny, was a true joy. He brought a lot of comedy to the role that is nuanced and fans will be extremely happy with his portrayal.”

As for Rudolph's portrayal, when we talk of her role, I mention the fact that some celebrities of East Asian descent, such as Michelle Yeoh and Jessica Henwick, have talked openly about being hesitant to take on various roles throughout their career as they could have been considered stereotypical for Asian actors.

As an actor who was born in Hong Kong, educated in Britain and is of Korean and German descent, Rudolph is upfront about the fact that it was a challenge at first to find her place in the industry. When we speak of Henwick – who was initially hesitant to take on the role of Colleen Wing in Iron Fist as she had previously avoided martial artist roles – Rudolph says she didn’t share the same concerns when taking on the role of Kitana.

She explains that Kitana was such an established character in pop culture history with rich lore and backstory that there was no risk of it being a one-dimensional portrayal.

“I looked at this from the standpoint of, 'This is an iconic character'. Was I mindful of overstepping one way or another? No, not really. I had so much lore and original IP to go off of. I was mainly concerned with doing Kitana justice with the way she stands and exists as she does in the game."

Following the release of Mortal Kombat II, Rudolph will next be seen in the hotly anticipated psychological thriller Perfect Girl. The movie, led by Arden Cho, Jeon Somi and Rudolph, follows a competitive K-Pop group preparing for their debut when suddenly, contestants are being attacked one by one.

Details for the movie remain limited and Rudolph is tight-lipped when I probe about the K-Pop thriller. However, she asserts that Perfect Girl is a passion project which “healed the inner child in her”.

The supporting cast of the movie features prominent and successful K-Pop artists such as Jeon Somi, Nancy from Momoland, Siyoon from Billlie and Chaerin from Cherry Bullet. It was the process of working with these real artists that provided Rudolph with a depth of knowledge that helped inform her performance.

“We had such an incredible cast and such unique insight into the industry by incredible talent who have lived through the training system. It was a dream. Those girls are superheroes. I take my hat off to all of them. I think they are so cool, so talented and down to earth. They’re amazing,” said Rudolph.

While that upcoming role is one that showcases Rudolph’s own cultural background and will undoubtedly be one that gets people talking, Rudolph’s path into acting hasn’t always been a smooth one.

But rather than letting previous experiences hold her back or make her feel limited by specific roles, Rudolph has turned her diverse background into a superpower as she looks to transition between different markets and film industries.

“I would love to do Korean movies. I would love to do German movies. And I’m so grateful to be working in America [and Hollywood], so anything that I’m able to get my hands on, I’m grateful for,” Rudolph beams.

Mortal Kombat II is out now in cinemas.

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