Karate Kid: Legends is the latest movie in the beloved franchise and largely steps away from the characters in the 1984 original, focusing instead on a new martial arts prodigy named Li Fong (Ben Wang). Karate Kid: Legends is not really a sequel to Cobra Kai, as Jonathan Entwistle confirmed in an interview. It does, however, take place chronologically after the events of the Netflix series, and includes original protagonist Daniel LaRusso (Ralph Macchio).

Daniel has lived a whole life during the six seasons of Cobra Kai, which shows the now-adult character being settled down with a wife and children. Karate Kid: Legends focuses solely on Daniel, rather than his family or others in Cobra Kai, which has a clear reason behind it.

Karate Kid: Legends Ignores Daniel’s Entire Family

And They Had To For Legal Reasons

Despite Daniel being featured in Karate Kid: Legends, the movie leaves out his entire family. It does not even make direct reference to the characters, failing to explain away why they are not there. Instead, Daniel’s scenes are focused on his interactions with Li and Mr. Han (Jackie Chan). While this still brings together multiple generations in the Karate Kid legacy, this is a notable omission given how important the characters were to the Netflix series.

The main reason behind this narrative decision could be legal-related. Any characters introduced by Netflix in Cobra Kai are under the streamer’s ownership, so they did not have the rights to include them in the movie without any special permission. Daniel and Johnny Lawrence (though his appearance was only brief) were fair game, as they originated from the movie series, which is the property of Columbia Pictures. This means that Daniel’s TV world and film world are completely different, as his family cannot logistically be canon in the films. Entwistle even addressed this Karate Kid matter in an interview, saying:

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.

Cobra Kai Explains Where Sam Is In Karate Kid: Legends

She Goes To Japan

Though she is not discussed in Karate Kid: Legends, Cobra Kai explains what Sam is up to. Played by Mary Mouser in the Netflix series, Samantha (Sam) is Daniel’s eldest child. According to the series, she is into martial arts and struggles with living up to her father’s legacy.

According to the Cobra Kai season 6 ending, Sam goes off to college. Specifically, she is on a study abroad program in Japan through the University of California. Karate Kid: Legends takes place roughly three years after the ending of Cobra Kai. So, even if Sam was not still all the way in Japan, she would likely still be in college, as typical colleges are four-year programs. This would be the easiest way to explain away Sam’s absence in Legends.

Where Are Amanda & Anthony LaRusso Then?

Cobra Kai Doesn’t Explain Away Their Absence As Easily

Amanda, Daniel’s wife, and Anthony, his son, do not go international at the end of Cobra Kai. Anthony is still in high school when Cobra Kai ends. The LaRussos live in the San Fernando Valley of Los Angeles, whereas Karate Kid: Legends takes place largely in New York City. Now, it is possible that Anthony would have graduated from high school by the time Legends is set, but even so, it is conceivable that he would still be at home.

If Anthony is still at home, Amanda would likely be with him in California. Even if Karate Kid: Legends had been able to include Cobra Kai characters, Amanda’s appearance would have been made more challenging since Courtney Henggeler, who played the character in the movie, announced earlier this year that she would be quitting acting. As such, any future Karate Kid projects will likely leave the character out regardless of copyright legality, unless Henggeler were to change her mind.