[Update] One of the actors involved in the project, Jeri Ryan, has explained a bit more about the Mortal Kombat video, revealing that it is a short film to convince Warner Bros. to make a full-length film. [End of Update]

A new, seemingly high budget (or, ‘with a budget’) live-action video has recently appeared on Mother Internet featuring well-known (and ‘known’) actors playing the parts of characters such as ‘Baraka,’ ‘Reptile,’ ‘Jax,’ ‘Sonya Blade,’ ‘Johnny Cage’ and ‘Scorpion.’

To an average film viewer, these names would be nothing more than B-movie aliases for B-movie actors starring in a B-movie action… movie.

To videogame fans however… ah, videogame fans would find these names quite alluring, and attaching them to actors (well-known or not) is a sign that it’s time to get excited about the possibility of a new Mortal Kombat movie.

With a much (much) darker tone than previous Mortal Kombat movies, and a more realistic (using the term loosely) milieu, this seven minute video for a Mortal Kombat project of some kind reveals origin stories for Reptile and Baraka, and introduces Johnny Cage, Jax, Sonya Blade and Scorpion to viewers, while throwing in a few mentions of other classic Mortal Kombat characters along the way.

Is this a trailer for the next Mortal Kombat movie, or something else? Whatever it is, it’s alluring:

Seeing as how Warner Bros. now owns the rights to Mortal Kombat after the company’s successful acquisition of Midway (as well as some Midway studios and assets), executives must be keen to start getting the franchise to make some money for them, perhaps with a feature film?

Will we see the next Mortal Kombat game at E3 2010, to coincide with the release of this… project? Events next week will reveal all.