Two weeks later in Hong Kong
John Carlton, better known as Johnny Cage, movie star and soon to be competitor of Shang Tsung's tournament. For the past few weeks, the competition was all he could think about. It's also on the minds of his agent and personal secretary.
"Look, Johnny, all I'm saying is that maybe you should reconsider this tournament thing. I mean look at that boat. You can't get on that hunk of junk. You're a commodity. You're looking at 20 million this year. Do you really want to risk that?"
"Would you relax, Chuck?"
"Johnny, You need to be back by the 15th," his secretary reminded him. "You're scheduled to shoot Iron Claw on the 17th and you haven't even read the script yet."
"Come on, Johnny," Chuck pleaded. "These people could be crazy. This tournament is not sponsored by any martial arts organization, and I can't find a single person who even heard of the friggin' thing. Just reconsider?"
"Nope." Johnny was already boarding the barge. "I'll be back in two weeks, Chuck. These are quality people. Trust me."
"Yeah, just don't get hit in the face."
"Hey, who would hit Johnny Cage? People love me!"