Karate Kid: Legends director Jonathan Entwistle confirmed what fans suspected about the absence of several characters from Netflix's Cobra Kai series. The latest Karate Kid movie introduces a refreshing take on the Miyagi-verse by showcasing Ben Wang's Li Fong as the brand-new protagonist. What makes him stand out is the fact that two legendary masters trained him in the film: Jackie Chan's Mr. Han (from the Karate Kid remake in 2010) for Kung-Fu and Ralph Macchio's Daniel LaRusso for Karate (from the original Karate Kid trilogy and the Cobra Kai series).
While Karate Kid: Legends is designed as a bridge between the movies and Cobra Kai due to Daniel's inclusion, other characters from the Netflix show (such as Daniel's daughter Samantha LaRusso, Miguel Diaz, and Robby Keene) are absent and not even referenced in the film, which is disappointing for some diehard fans. However, there is a good reason why this was the case.
In an exclusive Q&A from Reddit, Karate Kid: Legends director Jonathan Entwistle explained that he was constrained by a "key limitation" because Cobra Kai is under the Netflix banner, pointing out that it would be up to them to "make a movie with those characters:"
Fan: "Were there limitations on what elements you could draw from, such as Cobra Kai or The Next Karate Kid? If there is a sequel, would you be looking to pull from these sources too? I think, especially with 'Cobra Kai' being so recent, it would be neat to bring in some of those characters, too. And of course, Hilary Swank would always be welcome!"
Jonathan Entwistle: "The key limitation here is that 'Cobra Kai' is a Netflix show. It would be down to them as a studio to make a movie with those characters. I was playing with the characters from the movies."
Another fan also has the same sentiment by pointing out that the movie ignored Cobra Kai, but Entwistle responded with a simple answer, noting that he is talking about "characters owned by Netflix:"
Fan: "Why does the movie so weirdly ignore 'Cobra Kai.' [There is] not one single line of dialogue explaining why or how Daniel just left his wife and kids and dealership to be in your film?"
Answer: "You are talking about characters owned by Netflix."
Daniel LaRusso appears to be an exception since the character is a huge part of the original trilogy, and his presence is crucial in helping push Li Fong to the forefront as the new Karate Kid.
Despite the absence of the other Cobra Kai characters, Cobra Kai showrunners Jon Hurwitz and Josh Heald spoke with The Direct on how they developed the connective tissue between the Netflix series and Karate Kid: Legends, confirming that they made sure that "there were no contradictions" between the two projects to forge a smooth transition:
"We were knee deep in making the final season of 'Cobra Kai' when we found out about that movie happening. And you know, we just wanted to make sure that there were no contradictions so that if fans watch it, they're like, whoa. 'Cobra Kai' said this, and this movie said that. And Ralph Machio made sure of that. You know, there was nothing like that."
It seemed that the collaboration between the two creatives worked, with Ralph Macchio playing a crucial part on both sides of the development.
Karate Kid: Legends follows Li Fong as he moves to New York due to his mother's career move as a doctor. After creating a newfound friendship with Mia and her dad Victor, Li gets entangled in a rivalry against Mia's ex, Conor, who challenges him to a fight at the Five Boroughs Tournament. To win, Mr. Han (Li's uncle) seeks the help of Daniel LaRusso to assist in Li's training by combining the art of Kung-Fu and Karate.
Karate Kid: Legends features a cast led by Ben Wang as Li Fong, Jackie Chan as Mr. Han, Ralph Macchio as Daniel LaRusso, Sadie Stanley as Mia, Joshua Jackson as Victor, and Aramis Knight as Conor.
Will More Cobra Kai Characters Appear in Future Karate Kid Films?
Warning - the rest of this article contains spoilers for Karate Kid: Legends.
Daniel LaRusso wasn't the only Cobra Kai character to appear in the movie. The final moments of Karate Kid: Legends featured a surprise appearance from Johnny Lawrence (William Zabka), who was seen hanging out at Daniel's place. Johnny's appearance further cemented Cobra Kai's ending, which showed the two former rivals are still close friends after all these years (Karate Kid: Legends took place three years after the events of the Netflix show).
Aside from Johnny's inclusion, Li Fong also sent a note to Daniel that he can always call him if he needs help with anything, suggesting that the pair could reunite if a sequel to Legends ever gets made.
While Karate Kid: Legends director Jonathan Entwistle points out the limitations of not being able to bring Cobra Kai characters into his movie, the door is still open for the likes of Johnny, Tory, Sam, and Miguel to return because there is already strong collaboration between the creatives of the Netflix show and the movies.
The prospect of seeing Li Fong be trained or even mingle with some of Cobra Kai's core stars will definitely dial up the hype for a future Karate Kid movie. Anything is possible, especially after Karate Kid: Legends received strong first reactions.
