Who is Noob Saibot? What role does he play in the Mortal Kombat sequel? For those who may not have religiously played the Mortal Kombat games, or familiar with MK lore, this article will bring you up to speed.
The ending of the first trailer for Mortal Kombat II featured a duel between Scorpion and a ninja-looking character dressed in all black. Scorpion makes short work of this character and slices them in half in flawless victory fashion. The character Scorpion makes mincemeat out of is Noob Saibot.
Who is Noob Saibot
Noob Saibot is actually Bi-Han – aka Sub-Zero, but in the form of what's known as a Wraith. Essentially, Sub-Zero was defeated by Scorpion but due to a spell cast by Quan Chi, Bi-Han's soul was resurrected and corrupted, leaving him undead – turning him into a Wraith (not quite ghost / not quite dead either).
Residing in the Netherrealm, Noob Saibot belongs to the cult-like Brotherhood of the Shadow faction and utilizes unique shadow abilities as part of his fighting style. While not inherently evil, Noob's allegiance seems to be more neutral, however he does often align with darker forces in the games.
Noob Saibot in the Movie
While little is known of Noob's role in the Mortal Kombat 2 movie, some might assume that the fact they essentially kill him off in the first trailer suggests his role will not be that significant. Perhaps purely fan service. However, given Noob's nature, his death by Scorpion in the trailer could be insignificant as well since he can keep resurrecting. What's interesting to note is the favor over Scorpion in the battle – since Noob Saibot should be more powerful and best Scorpion in combat. The trailer depicts Scorpion manhandling Noob with very little retaliation or defense by Saibot. This begs the question – why...
We know Bi-Han plays some kind of role in the new Mortal Kombat movie. Like the other main characters, he has his own character poster. But, you will notice, on the poster Bi-Han sports a different appearance than the Noob Saibot version in the trailer:
Interestingly, the poster sports the name Bi-Han, not Noob Saibot as well. Perhaps we'll see further evolution of the Bi-Han / Sub-Zero character in this film.
While some might feel Noob Saibot got shafted in the trailer, we suspect there's more to his character arc that's being kept secret. Regardless, it's great to see such an iconic character and fan favorite make its cinematic debut.
Directed by Simon McQuoid, based on a screenplay by Jeremy Slater, Mortal Kombat II stars newcomer Karl Urban as Johnny Cage! Cast also includes Adeline Rudolph, Jessica McNamee, Josh Lawson, Ludi Lin, Mehcad Brooks, Tati Gabrielle, Lewis Tan, Damon Herriman, Chin Han, with returning stars Tadanobu Asano as Raiden, Joe Taslim as Bi-Han, and Hiroyuki Sanada as Hanzo Hasashi / Scorpion.
Mortal Kombat 2's official release date is set for May 15th, 2026!
