Common Sense Media Review
By Jeffrey Anderson
,
based on child development research. How do we rate?
Hit-and-miss adaptation of violent video game; language.
Parents Need to Know
Why Age 13+?
Any Positive Content?
Where to Watch
Videos and Photos
Street Fighter
What's the Story?
In STREET FIGHTER, Ryu (Andrew Koji) uses the hado technique during a tournament, which inadvertently awakens the monstrous Akuma. Akuma murders Ryu's master, Gouken, and Ryu and his adopted brother, Ken Masters (Noah Centineo), have a falling out. Six years later, another tournament is announced. Ken has been enjoying being a celebrity, rarely participating in a real fight, and no one knows where Ryu is. Fighter Chun-Li (Callina Liang) manages to track Ryu down, but when Ryu learns that Ken will be participating in the tournament, he knows he must intervene, as Akuma has vowed to destroy the winner. In secret, the entire tournament is the brainchild of the evil M. Bison (David Dastmalchian), intended to lure Ryu out of hiding so his powers can be stolen.
Is It Any Good?
The third live-action movie based on the beloved Capcom video game, this one tries the hardest to appeal to fans, but it's still a little bit too hit and miss to really punch in as a success. The best parts of Street Fighter are the gorgeous hand-drawn animated flashback sequences that explain the complicated relationship between main characters Ryu and Ken—although, to be honest, if they'd just sat down and talked, there would have been no trouble.
The live-action stuff hits with a little less impact. The fights are neatly choreographed, but since the characters are a two-dimensional mix of swagger and silliness, it's hard to care much about their outcomes. Dastmalchian, a talented actor, is cast as the big villain, and it's an underwritten part; he does his best with it and almost pulls it off, but it falls into cliché too often. Jason Momoa appears in a mo-cap CGI performance as a green-skinned, Hulk-like giant, and he offers a little fun, but it's for too short a time. All in all, just when viewers are starting to enjoy themselves even a little, things go on a little too long or take a wrong turn, and they're back where they started. The best you can say is that this Street Fighter is head and shoulders above the last outing, 2009's dreadful Street Fighter: The Legend of Chun-Li.
Talk to Your Kids About ...
Families can talk about Street Fighter's violence. How did it make you feel? Was it exciting? Shocking? What did the movie show or not show to achieve this effect? Why is that important?
How does the movie show the importance of communication—and demonstrate how the lack of it can lead to trouble?
Do the characters demonstrate teamwork? Why is that an important character strength?
How does this adaptation compare to the other movies and video games in the franchise? What about this version is better or worse than other entries?
Movie Details
- In theaters : October 16, 2026
- Cast : Noah Centineo , Andrew Koji , Callina Liang
- Director : Kitao Sakurai
- Studio : Paramount Pictures
- Genre : Action/Adventure
- Topics : Competition , Fantasy ( Magic , Monsters ) , Friendship , Sports ( Martial arts )
- Run time : 119 minutes
- MPAA rating :
- MPAA explanation : violence/action, bloody images, strong language, sexual references, partial nudity and brief smoking
- Last updated : October 26, 2026
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