Karate Kid: Legends director Jonathan Entwistle has said the Cobra Kai team have been involved in “little steps” along the way to help connect the Netflix series to the new movie.
Karate Kid: Legends stars both Ralph Macchio and Jackie Chan but, with Macchio’s Daniel LaRusso kicking and punching up a storm in the Valley in Cobra Kai prior to the events of the movie, Entwistle wanted everything to fit seamlessly together.
“I was excited about the idea that the films and the series can all be part of one family,” Entwistle told Entertainment Weekly. “I’ve had some really detailed conversations with the Cobra Kai team about just cool stuff that we can do in the movie and can make this whole thing feel holistic.”
The director continued, “And obviously, Ralph is really, really close to it after all those years on Cobra Kai, and they’ve been involved in little steps along the way. Everything we talked about made it into the movie in some way or other, either through Ralph or through the conversations. We’re really excited that we’ve added another piece to the overall universe.”
With Cobra Kai’s ending arriving in 2025, all we know right now about the next step on Daniel’s journey is that Karate Kid: Legends takes place three years after the events of the Netflix series and sees Daniel join forces with Jackie Chan’s Mr. Han from 2010’s The Karate Kid. Ben Wang stars as the titular Karate Kid, Li Fong.
“It was not a quick decision, because it was about protecting the Daniel LaRusso character, and finding where he would be at that point, and then protecting the whole legacy in the Miyagi-verse,” Macchio previously told Variety on the decision to reprise his Karate Kid and Cobra Kai role on the big screen opposite Jackie Chan “Once we were able to line that up, for the Cobra Kai story to lead into the new film – even though they’re separate ecosystems – it all made sense for me. Then, working with Jackie was just super exciting. I started this on the big screen. How cool is it to get it back to the big screen?”
The first two parts of Cobra Kai’s final season are streaming on Netflix, with the third and final part dropping next year. Karate Kid: Legends hits cinemas on May 30, 2025.
For more, check out the new TV shows and upcoming movies heading your way very soon. Then dive into our verdict on Cobra Kai’s latest episodes with our Cobra Kai season 6, part 2 review.