The Karate Kid is one of the many classic 80s films to get revived in the 21st Century. We’ve seen sequels for The Terminator, Alien, Star Wars, and even reboots of franchises such as Dredd and Robocop. Yet, it’s arguable that none of them were revived or rebooted as well as The Karate Kid. The hit trilogy received a spin-off show called Cobra Kai, which premiered exclusively on YouTube Red in 2018 before moving, becoming one of the streamer’s biggest and most beloved hits.
Unlike the 2011 Karate Kid reboot movie, Cobra Kai is a direct continuation of the original trilogy. We follow Johnny Lawrence. one of the bullies seen in the first film and his life has fallen since the battle in the All Valley Tournament. Here, Johnny opens up a dojo and revives the Cobra Kai name and mantra. We see a slew of returning characters and new kids learning the ways of Cobra Kai and Mr. Miyagi.
Cobra Kai is a series with one of the biggest casts on TV, and it can be challenging to keep track of every character. Luckily, we took the time to craft an extensive guide through the world of The Karate Kid and Cobra Kai. Here is every major player series.
Table of Contents
Returning Karate Kid Characters
Johnny Lawrence
In a twist on the original franchise, Johnny Lawrence (William Zabka) is the main character of Cobra Kai. We last saw him getting kicked in the face by Daniel LaRusso at the end of The Karate Kid. Now, he’s a middle-aged man who seemingly peaked in high school. When we first meet Johnny in the present-day, he’s at a very low place. Still, after meeting Miguel and teaching him how to stand up for himself, Johnny realizes that teaching Karate is his calling -becoming a mentor for Miquel and the other kids who enroll at Cobra Kai.
After his old sensei, John Kreese, renters the picture, Johnny has to deal with the changes in his students. Eventually, some of his students favor Kreese’s harsher methods, forcing Johnny to start a new dojo separate from the now Kreese-led Cobra Kai, Eagle Fang Karate, and no, Eagles don’t have fangs.
Daniel La Russo
Daniel LaRusso (Ralph Macchio) was the star of The Karate Kid trilogy and rival of Johnny Lawrence. After the events of The Karate Kid Part III, Daniel met his wife Amanda, has two children, and now runs one of the most prominent car dealerships in California. His life of luxury and success is the complete opposite of Johnny’s, and that contrast, along with the difference in their master’s philosophy, constantly has them at odds with each other.
This rivalry leads to Daniel starting a new dojo, Miyagi Do Karate, where he teaches a less aggressive philosophy, in stark contrast to Johnny’s Cobra Kai. With Kreese in the picture, Daniel and Johnny eventually combine their dojos in a united front against Cobra Kai, leading into the events of season four.
John Kreese
The founder of Cobra Kai, John Kreese (Martin Kove ), makes his triumphant return in the season one finale. Johnny’s old master appears to have changed from the taskmaster we’ve come to know from the films, but as the story progresses, we see that he’s as ruthless as ever. From there on, Kreese becomes the main antagonist becoming a problem to both Johnny and Daniel, to the point where Johnny loses control of his dojo.
In season three, we have flashbacks to his military days and see Young Kreese (Barrett Carnahan) learn the harsh truths of war and how it influences his actions in the present day. Kreese starts to build his army of karate masters and weeds out the weaker fighters in Cobra Kai, and now, only the ruthless remain.
Terry Silver
Terry Silver (Thomas Ian Griffith) is a close friend of John Kreese and one of the main characters from The Karate Kid Part III. In that film, we learned that Silver gifted Kreese the Cobra Kai dojo, and at the end of season three, we learned that Kreese has requested Silver for help. We haven’t seen Terry Silver yet, but he will be a major player in season four, likely serving as a new foil for Daniel and Johnny.
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New Characters
Miguel Diaz
Miguel Diaz (Xolo Maridueña) is a high school student and the next-door neighbor of Johnny Lawrence. After Johnny sees Miguel getting jumped, he decides to take him under his wing, making him the first student of the newly revamped Cobra Kai. Miguel and Johnny have a very special relationship and are helping each other for the better. Under Johnny’s tutelage, Miguel is finally able to fight back. He inspires the “nerds” to join Cobra Kai and learn self-defense, eventually leading to him winning the All Valley tournament.
The Cobra Kai mentality starts to affect Miguel negatively, and he starts to become more hot-headed and aggressive. After his season two fight with Robby, a battle so brutal it left Miguel in a coma, Miguel began to realize that a more level-headed approach to life is better than the No Mercy mentality Johnny initially taught him. This ends with him reuniting with his friends at Myagi-Do and Eagle Fang.
Samantha La Russo
Samantha LaRusso (Mary Mouser) is the daughter of Daniel and is in a relationship with Miguel. The two are caught in the middle of Johnny and Daniel’s rivalry, which makes their relationship complicated. Sam eventually joins her father’s new Myagi-Do dojo, which leads to even more drama as she gets closer to Johnny’s son, Robby Keene.
Sam was taught karate at a very early age, learning from Daniel and even Mr. Myagi when she was little. She’s been caught up in this karate rivalry and started helping her father train the Myagi-Do students.
Robby Keene
Robby Keene (Tanner Buchanan) is Johnny’s son and is taken in by the La Russo family. Johnny was never in Robby’s life, and his mother wasn’t around enough to raise him properly. The kindness that the La Russo’s showed Robby was helping him change, but after a run-in with John Kreese, he starts to go down a dark path, just like Johnny did back in the 80s.
After putting Miguel in a coma, Robby ends up in juvey and wants nothing to do with Daniel or Johnny. The love triangle between Sam, Miguel, and Robby only complicates things further. This experience only pushes him further into the hands of Kreese, leading to him switching sides by the end of season three.
Eli “Hawk” Moskowitz
Like Miguel, Eli Moskowitz (Jacob Bertrand) is a teenager who’s constantly bullied, but after joining Cobra Kai, he finds his confidence. Unfortunately, the new Eli (now going by Hawk) channels his rage into false bravado, making him the bully he was trying to stand up to not long ago.
Hawk quickly becomes the most vicious of the Cobra Kai students. He starts picking fights, relishing the chance to battle someone. After all of his friends leave, he begins to realize that Kreese is a bit of a psychopath. He starts to change his ways and joins the others at the new Eagle Fang and Myagi Do dojo.
Tory Nichols
Tory Nichols (Peyton List) joins Cobra Kai in season two, and from the beginning, we see she’s already on Miguel’s level of fighting prowess. After his breakup with Sam, Tory and Miguel start to date, but he still has feelings for his ex-girlfriend. This is the start of her rivalry with Sam, but things only escalate when John Kreese takes over Cobra Kai.
Kreese knows that Tory is by far the strongest fighter in Cobra Kai, so he does everything he can to make sure she holds on to her anger and rage. He manipulates her and Robby so he can create the best fighters possible. Unfortunately, for everyone else, Tory seemingly loves the new Cobra Kai, meaning they’ll have a hand full if they cross paths with Tory again.
Demitri
Demitri (Gianni Decenzo) is a friend of Miguel and Hawk but does not like Johnny or Kreese’s teaching methods. He’s a bit of a coward, and that makes him the odd one out in their friend group. Though, he does eventually find his fighting spirit when he switches to Myagi-Do Karate.
Amanda LaRusso
Amanda LaRusso (Courtney Henggeler) is Daniel’s wife and co-founder of the LaRusso Auto Group. She’s often the voice of reason and constantly tries to get Daniel to end his rivalry with Johnny. In season three, we see Amanda becoming more aggressive when Kreese takes over Cobra Kai.
Kreese seems to bring the worst out of everyone, and Amanda is the only person who thought to call the police regarding this gang war. Unfortunately for her, Kreese is always three steps ahead.
Carmen Diaz
Miguel’s mother, Carmen Diaz (Vanessa Rubio), is reluctant about her son learning karate, but after seeing how happy it made Miguel, she ended up letting him train with Johnny. Her relationship with Johnny grows from there, and they even started dating, but after Robby put Miguel in a coma, she broke all ties with Johny and rightfully blamed him for what happened.
After Miguel’s recovery, Carmen eventually let Johnny back into her life, but the two have not started dating again. Johnny never gets to confess his feelings because Miguel is caught up in another fight against Kreese’s Cobra Kai.
Karate Kid sequel series? Here’s your complete guide to the Cobra Kai characters and who plays