The upcoming Karate Kid: Legends
has a lot to be excited about, but it can’t forget two key characters in all the anticipation. After originally releasing all the way back in 1984, The Karate Kid has grown to be an extraordinary success with numerous sequels, a spin-off series, and a reboot movie that was released in 2010. And throughout that entire run, most of these projects included key figures like Daniel LaRusso, played by Ralph Macchio.

Even though LaRusso was not referenced in the 2010 reboot, that film is now retroactively being made canon due to Karate Kid: Legends including both Ralph Macchio reprising his role, and Jackie Chan, who will reprise the role of Mr. Han, who he played in the 2010 movie. This sequel is set to be one of the most ambitious and exciting entries in the series, but it also raises questions about whether it will reference and feature key characters from the other projects, or confuse the timeline further by ignoring them altogether.

Karate Kid: Legends Must Acknowledge Johnny Lawrence & Dre Parker

Two Of The Most Important Characters In The Karate Kid Franchise

Since the original Karate Kid, one of the biggest outright successes to come out of the franchise was Cobra Kai. A spin-off show created exclusively for Netflix, which brought Daniel LaRusso and Johnny Lawrence back in contact after many years of being apart. But, even if Cobra Kai were to be ignored, which would be a mistake given its incredible popularity, Karate Kid: Legends, it cannot afford to ignore Johnny Lawrence, the original rival to LaRusso. It would be weird, and frankly insulting for the character to have become so integral, and then completely disappear.

And likewise, since Legends is a sequel to both of The Karate Kid movies, it would be weird for the film to simply ignore and erase Dre Parker. While they don’t need to have some major part, or potentially even appear in a cameo, it doesn’t make sense to have these characters, who played pivotal roles in the lives of both LaRusso and Mr. Han, simply be ignored, and never mentioned again.

A Daniel & Mr. Han Karate Kid Crossover Without Johnny & Dre Feels Weird

Karate Kid: Legends Can’t Move Forward Without Looking Back

The fact that Legends has brought LaRusso back to the mainline series of films implies that his timeline is being tied into this larger cinematic franchise continuation. And he has grown and learned a lot since his days on the mat at the All-Valley. But most of this growth actually came years after Miyagi’s death, when LaRusso reunited with his old rival Johnny, and began to see him as an ally and a friend. This arc is integral to the character, and unless his history is being rewritten for Legends, it’s weird and disrespectful to cut out key parts of his life.

When it comes to Mr. Han, his journey is significantly darker. Years prior to his appearance in the 2010 film, Mr. Han crashed a car and his wife and child were killed in the incident. This led to Mr. Han living as a recluse, imposing punishments on himself, and deeming himself unworthy to engage with others. But Dre was a key part of helping Mr. Han forgive himself and move on. So having Dre disappear, and resetting or rewriting the characters’ history feels like the entire franchise may as well have been erased. Bringing these characters back makes it vital that their development, and those responsible, should not be ignored.

Why Karate Kid: Legends Doesn’t Really Need Johnny Lawrence & Dre Parker

At Least Making Reference To The Former Cast Of The Karate Kid

And as essential as they are to the characters’ histories, they don’t even need to be brought in for key roles. If Karate Kid: Legends placed them in the film in small cameo roles, that would be the ideal, but at the very least, they should be referred to by LaRusso and Mr. Han. In order to avoid distractions from the new plot, and the new star Karate Kid, the movie should only use Dre and Johnny in pᴀssing, with the characters popping up at the end, or waving goodbye to LaRusso and Mr. Han. But improving on this, both Daniel and Mr. Han could have a conversation about their journey with martial arts.

They can talk fondly about their big wins, like Daniel’s first victory at the All-Valley, and mourn together about their losses, such as Mr. Han’s family. But at these points, it would also be worth talking about the people who helped take them from a lowly All-Valley champ to a well-rounded sensei, or from a self-loathing recluse, to someone who embraced his love of learning and teaching again. Karate Kid: Legends has a lot of room to explore these characters in new ways, but to do so properly, it must also acknowledge where they came from.