The article contains spoilers for Karate Kid: Legends.Karate Kid: Legends director Jonathan Entwistle explains why none of the original Cobra Kai characters appeared in the movie sequel. Following the conclusion of the Netflix series, the new Karate Kid sequel sees two different martial arts worlds collide when Li Fong (Ben Wang) gets trained by Mr. Han (Jackie Chan) and Daniel LaRusso (Ralph Macchio) for the Five Boroughs tournament. The movie’s timeline takes place three years after the events of Cobra Kai season 6. While Macchio returned to reprise his iconic role, none of the original Cobra Kai characters appeared in Legends.

While speaking with The Hollywood Reporter, Entwistle revealed the main reason why no original character from Cobra Kai appeared in Legends. The decision ultimately came down to property ownership, which meant that the director was allowed to incorporate characters and any details from the Karate Kid movies. Unfortunately, Cobra Kai-specific details were not allowed to be used since they were not Columbia Pictures’ property. Read his full comment below:

We could use anything that’s in the movies. We could have used and touched on any concept that was in the original movies. So we could always use Daniel and Miyagi, but any elements that are Cobra Kai-specific are not a Columbia Pictures property.

How This Karate Kid: Legends Detail Explains The Lack Of Cobra Kai Mentions

Netflix Owns The Streaming Rights To Cobra Kai

While Karate Kid audiences had hoped to see some Cobra Kai characters, this reveal may have finally resolved the case as to why that couldn’t happen. Cobra Kai was originally a YouTube Red series before Netflix claimed the streaming rights to the show, which concluded with season 6. While both Legends and Cobra Kai are under Sony Pictures, it’s possible that the Netflix deal may have prevented this crossover. While this detail is not confirmed, Entwistle recently answered many questions on a Reddit AMA, which included similar inquiries about the lack of Cobra Kai characters. While responding to one user, he said the following:

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.”

As a result, Legends was only allowed to bring back characters already introduced in the Karate Kid movies, but not from Cobra Kai. Despite this fact, the latest sequel did see one more franchise character make a reprise cameo. At the end of Karate Kid: Legends, William Zabka reprised his role of Johnny Lawrence in a brief interaction with Daniel. Even though Cobra Kai was centered on Johnny’s story, he was first introduced in the 1984 original Karate Kid, which would explain why he was the only other character from the series to appear in the sequel.

Beyond that, there are no mentions of any character from Cobra Kai. Even before the movie’s release, the director was adamant that he wanted the series and the movie’s stories to be separate. In an interview with Collider, he elaborated that Legends was set “within the Karate Kid universe‘ and is “another chapter in the story.” In addition, he also stated that the movie was not a sequel to Cobra Kai. This becomes very clear as the movie focuses on Li and his journey, as Mr. Han and Daniel try to teach two branches of martial arts to him.

Our Take On This Revelation About Cobra Kai Characters Not Appearing In Karate Kid: Legends

It’s A Huge Bummer!

While the cast and crew have not discussed any follow-ups to Karate Kid: Legends, this new comment is a huge bummer for any chance of a Cobra Kai character appearing in the movies and even opens a can of worms. The Netflix series was a key factor in rejuvenating interest in the Karate Kid franchise, especially due to characters like Robby, Miguel, and Tory, who had incredible character arcs. Now this complication only leads to questions about how the Karate Kid movies can even acknowledge Daniel’s own family when they originated in the Netflix series.

Despite the disappointing update, there is always a chance that this issue could be resolved, especially if there are hopes for a movie sequel. This may require Sony and Netflix to discuss ways to allow those crossovers to happen. In addition, when Cobra Kai ended with season 6, the show’s creators and Macchio spoke about potential spinoffs that could continue the stories with the existing characters. While there is currently nothing confirmed at the moment, hopefully, Karate Kid: Legends won’t be the end of seeing these beloved characters. As the saying goes, Cobra Kai never dies!

Source: The Hollywood Reporter, Jonathan Entwistle/Reddit, Collider