First Look At YouTube's 'Karate Kid' Sequel 'Cobra Kai' Shows The Revival Of The Merciless Dojo
After more than three decades, Johnny and Daniel are far from forgetting their odds in the past. This was revealed in the Karate Kid sequel, Cobra Kai.
This was seen in the latest teaser released on YouTube on Thursday. Fans of Karate Kid know well that the original film, released in 1984, starred Ralph Macchio as Daniel Larusso and William Zabka as Johnny Lawrence. Now, they are reprising their roles in Cobra Kai.
'Karate Kid'
Karate Kid follows Daniel, who moved to California with his mom Lucille. However, he became the target of bullies, who attend the Cobra Kai school. Daniel then chanced upon a master of martial arts, Mr. Miyagi, who trained and taught him karate.
Cobra Kai pretty much follows the same storyline, sans the kids, and with the main cast being adult. It will revolve around former enemies who seemingly did not change after many years. After his life did not go as planned, Johnny decided to open his Cobra Kai dojo again.
As expected, this would rekindle the feud between Johnny and Daniel, who is now a father and a car dealer. The trailer saw Johnny teaching his class and announcing to them his karate maxim.
"We do not train to be merciful here. Mercy is for the weak," he said.
Daniel clearly wondered why Cobra Kai needed to be revived.
"Johnny, you and I, this, we aren't done," Daniel clarified.
Probably a classic karate fight will ensue, or probably one like the 1984 All Valley Karate Tournament, but the trailer was cut off immediately after that. Fans would have to wait and see for other trailers, one longer than this 48-second video, to know other details.
It was announced last year that the Karate Kid sequel is set to air, after the original film was lauded and had become iconic. Macchio explained that the matter had remained vital in present day, and it can especially touch today's generation.
"It was relevant today yet had all the pop culture — they had the perfect marriage and angle in bringing it from the Johnny Lawrence [point of view]," Macchio explained.
He also revealed that he had been offered to do it several times but had only agreed now. This, Macchio explained, is because he believed that the time is right. Meanwhile, Zabka also noted that the film would pave the way for the audience to understand his antagonist character in a deeper level.
"Through this show, you get to see who he was and where he came from. I never saw Johnny as a bad guy; I always saw him as the antagonist but at his core, he had a good heart," Zabka explained.
Cobra Kai is set to air on an unspecified date this year as a 10-episode series on YouTube Red.
Before YouTube Red snatched the action-packed project, it went head-to-head with Amazon, Netflix, Hulu, and AMC on bidding for this project.
