Mortal Kombat is a 1995 American fantasy martial arts film written by Kevin Droney, directed by Paul W. S. Anderson, and starring Robin Shou, Linden Ashby, Bridgette Wilson, Christopher Lambert, Cary-Hiroyuki Tagawa and Talisa Soto. Based on the early Mortal Kombat fighting games, the film was the first part of the Mortal Kombat film series. Its plot follows the warrior Liu Kang, actor Johnny Cage, and Special Forces officer Sonya Blade, all three guided by the god Raiden, on their journey to combat the evil sorcerer Shang Tsung and his forces in a tournament to save Earth. The main inspiration for the film was the original title of the video game series, but it also features some elements and characters from the follow-up game Mortal Kombat II.