Mortal Kombat: WWE's The Miz Discusses Losing The Johnny Cage Role To Karl Urban
To many fans' surprise, Johnny Cage wasn't in "Mortal Kombat," but the closing tease meant the fan-favorite movie star was on the way. It didn't take long for fan castings to take off, and The Miz quickly became a popular choice. Even better, the WWE superstar wanted to play Johnny Cage, but ultimately, the role went to Karl Urban. Now, Miz has finally opened up about what it was like losing out on his dream role.
"I really wanted to be Johnny Cage," Miz said in an interview with Comicbook. The Miz went on to reminisce about calling his agent and telling him he'd do whatever it takes to get into "Mortal Kombat 2," even campaigning for the role by reiterating his desire to play the character in every interview. Unfortunately, it didn't work out the way he intended. "I never got an audition, which is fine. I mean, maybe they just didn't see me as the character. And then I heard Karl Urban got it, and I was like, 'Wow.'" Ultimately, Miz said he wasn't angry about losing the part and believes Urban will be just as determined to make the character a success.
Although it didn't work out for him, Miz is still very excited to see what Urban brings as Johnny Cage in the sequel. He's a big fan of the actor's work on "The Boys" and thinks he'll do a fantastic job in the sequel, which he'll be first in line to see when it releases.
The Miz wants to break into Hollywood
Dwayne "The Rock" Johnson, John Cena, and Dave Bautista have all successfully transitioned from WWE to Hollywood, becoming some of the industry's biggest names in the process. Eventually, The Miz wants his name added to that roster. And even though he won't play Johnny Cage in the "Mortal Kombat" sequel, he won't let that stop him from achieving his goals.
"You literally take your bumps and bruises," Miz told Comicbook. "I mean, this is Hollywood. This is acting, there's one part. There's millions of people that want that part. There's one, and I didn't get it. And by the way, this happens all the time. So you take your lumps, and someday, someway, somehow, I will start getting into the movies that I feel like I want to get into and start doing the characters that I think are meaningful. And that could make me into what Cena, Batista, [and] The Rock have all done."
As for Johnny Cage, Miz is just thankful to get his thoughts off his chest finally. At the end of the day, he's still a massive "Mortal Kombat" fan, and he loved what Simon McQuoid did with the 2021 movie, so he's only hoping for the best with Karl Urban and the sequel. With Miz's determination to join the acting industry, it seems like only a matter of time before he gets his big break. And with future "Mortal Kombat" projects likely, we aren't writing him off from joining the franchise.