Street Fighter (2026) Paramount/Action RT: 119 minutes Rated PG-13 (violence/action, bloody images, strong language, sexual references, partial nudity) Director: Kitao Sakurai Screenplay: T.J. Fixman and Kitao Sakurai Music: Leo Birenberg and Zach Robinson Cinematography: Ken Seng Release date: October 16, 2026 (US) Cast: Noah Centineo, Andrew Koji, Callina Liang, Joe “Roman Reigns” Anoa’i, David Dastmalchian, Cody Rhodes, Andrew Schulz, Eric Andre, Vidyut Jammwal, Curtis “50 Cent” Jackson, Jason Momoa, Don Lee, Orville Peck, Olivier Richters, Hirooki Goto, Mel Jamson, Rayna Vallandingham, Alexander Volkanovski, Kyle Mooney.
Rating: ** ½
The following review of Street Fighter is written from the POV of somebody who’s never played any of the Street Fighter video games. I’ve only seen the 1994 movie starring JCVD and 2009’s Street Fighter: The Legend of Chun-Li. I don’t have a lot to go on; I’m simply taking it at face value.
Street Fighter is the latest film adaptation of a popular video game following right on the hot heels of the massively successful Resident Evil. Like RE, it’s a total reboot of the franchise. It’s incredibly dumb, narratively incoherent and an assault on the senses. Yet it’s also strangely fun. Go figure.
I’m shocked to see myself writing these words. I usually hate video game adaptations. Most of them are garbage. To be fair, I did enjoy the recent Mortal Kombat films and the new Resident Evil. Could it be I’m growing more tolerant in my old age? Maybe I’ve reached the point where I’m more likely to enjoy something as gleefully idiotic as Street Fighter more than a pretentious piece of s*** like Digger. No, I will never tire of making digs at Digger.
The plot (God help me!) centers on a huge martial arts tournament being held in the fictitious country of Shadaloo by the evil dictator Bison (Dastmalchian, Late Night with the Devil). His nefarious plan involves reuniting estranged brothers Ken Masters (Centineo, The Recruit) and Ryu (Koji, Bullet Train). An anime prologue, set in 1987, informs us that Ryu gained dangerous powers after winning the first World Warrior tournament. He also awakens a deity that murders the brothers’ adoptive father. This is what causes the rift between them. This power is also the reason Bison wants them there. He intends to steal it for himself.
In 1993, Ryu lives a life off the grid as a vagrant soup vendor while Ken has become an MTV-famous martial artist who makes a living hawking products and taking part in ridiculous promo events (e.g. fighting a polar bear). Ken, along with several other familiar characters, is recruited by Chun-Li (Liang, Presence) on behalf of Bison. Ryu shows up at his place and tries to talk him out of fighting, but Ken is determined to prove himself to…. well, himself.
To understand my thoughts on Street Fighter, it’s important that I acknowledge something. It’s not the kind of movie that holds up to reviews. The critics are going to hate it. That’s pretty much a given. But here’s the thing that works in its favor. It doesn’t matter what any critic says; the fans will still turn out. They don’t give a hoot what we have to say. It’s NOT for the critics; it’s for audiences. It’s important to draw that distinction before I proceed.
Directed by Kitao Sakurai (Bad Trip), Street Fighter is a mess. I don’t know how else to put it. The story is all over the place with way too many characters. It’s like Sakurai was trying to cram in as much as possible in a two-hour time frame. This results in several characters going underdeveloped. This won’t be a problem for the fans, but what about non-fans like me? I don’t know who these people are or what special abilities they possess. We need some context if we’re expected to care about or even understand what’s going on. I got the gist of it, but I had to do some research after I got home.
The acting, does it even matter? The actors are playing video game characters. They’re supposed to be broad, outrageous and cartoonish. At that, the cast succeeds. Only Liang turns in something close to a real performance. Dastmalchian hams it up as the wild-eyed villain. To the movie’s credit, he’s not visibly ailing like Raul Julia in the 1994 version. Momoa (Supergirl), one of the film’s producers, shows up in a gloried cameo as green-skinned Blanka. He’s becoming a parody of himself.
Now here’s what’s good about Street Fighter. It’s actually my favorite thing. It leans into its early 90s setting beautifully with its artificial film grain, colorful aesthetic and vintage soundtrack which, full disclosure, is out of whack. Why is Ryu singing the 4 Non Blondes song “What’s Up?” in 1987 when it came out in ’93? And what is “Who Let the Dogs Out?” even doing here? I guess Sakurai figured young audience members wouldn’t notice. They might not.
The fight choreography is broad and well-coordinated. I wish there was more of it. Some of the matches take place off-camera. That’s not good in a movie called Street Fighter. Still, there’s plenty of action and flashy special effects (decent CGI). I’m not crazy about the open-ended ending. They better do a sequel if they don’t want rioting in the multiplexes.
In the end, Street Fighter is for the fans, young and old. They’ll know what’s going on. To non-fans, it’ll be entertaining enough, but you’ll owe your brain an apology afterwards. Best to keep it idling in neutral throughout.
