Every character from The Karate Kid who appears in Cobra Kai brings something unique to the sequel story, and helps tie the Netflix show to the original film franchise. The sequel and continuation of the 1984 cult classic became a hit series on YouTube before moving to Netflix, running for 6 seasons between 2018 and 2025. Reuniting Ralph Macchio and William Zabka as arch-rivals Daniel LaRusso and Johnny Lawrence, Cobra Kai reignited their high school karate feud, which poured over into a new generation.

Cobra Kai hit the sweet spot of updating the Karate Kid saga for the 21st-century while cleverly weaving callbacks to the original movie. Cobra Kai season 1 even had an episode where Johnny hilariously narrated the events of The Karate Kid to Miguel, painting Daniel as the villain and himself as the beleaguered hero. By the end of Cobra Kai season 6, over a dozen Karate Kid characters had returned, with some even transitioning to heroes of the story just like Johnny Lawrence.

Daniel LaRusso

Played By Ralph Macchio

Daniel LaRusso emerged from the Karate Kid movies as a happily married family man and the owner of a very successful car dealership - until Johnny rebooted Cobra Kai and forced Daniel to counter its influence in the San Fernando Valley. At his best, Daniel maturely integrates Mr. Miyagi's teachings with his modern values and heart, but he is still hot-tempered and makes huge, costly judgment errors. While the two manage to reconcile their differences eventually, one of the best ways Cobra Kai brought back Karate Kid characters was by having Daniel LaRusso start the show as a borderline-antagonist.

Johnny Lawrence

Played By William Zabka

From the start, Cobra Kai predominently focuses on Johnny Lawrence, the villain from The Karate Kid. Johnny Lawrence is still largely trapped in his early-1980s glory years but he found a new purpose when he restarted Cobra Kai and began teaching his students his brand of "bad-ass" karate. Johnny still resents Daniel after all these years but Cobra Kai has tested their rivalry, especially after Johnny's son Robby became Daniel's student. Despite his many faults, Johnny proved to be an excellent karate teacher and he genuinely cares for Miguel and his Cobra Kai students.

Mr. Miyagi

Played By Pat Morita (Archival Footage)

While the death of actor Pat Morita in 2005 meant that Mr. Miyagi couldn't return for Cobra Kai, the legacy of his character is significant enough that his presence is felt spiritually even if he's not there physically. There are many moments throughout Cobra Kai season's 1-6 where footage from The Karate Kid movies is used to portray him on-screen, and the history of Mr. Miyagi is expanded just as much in Cobra Kai as any returning characters.

John Kreese

Played By Martin Kove

Among the many characters from The Karate Kid who return for Cobra Kai are various villains from the original movies, starting with Martin Kove's John Kreese. John Kreese reappeared at the end of Cobra Kai season 1 and took his place as the villain of season 2. At first posing as a down-on-his-luck vagrant, Kreese won Johnny's trust back, but it was all part of his plan to steal the Cobra Kai dojo away from Johnny and poison his students with his twisted karate philosophy. John Kreese remains a major antagonist throughout Cobra Kai, and is just as important a connection between the show and the legacy of the film franchise as Daniel LaRusso or Johnny Lawrence.

Terry Silver

Played By Thomas Ian Griffith

John Kreese wasn't the only villain from The Karate Kid movies to return in Cobra Kai. Terry Silver, the villainous Cobra Kai co-founder who was the antagonist in The Karate Kid III, reappeared in Cobra Kai season 3 after his presence being teased throughout seasons 1 and 2. Enlisted by Kreese to help deal with LaRusso and Lawrence, Silver remained one of the The Karate Kid franchise throughout every season of Cobra Kai he appeared in. Cobra Kai expands on Terry Silver's backstory significantly, with every revelation serving to make him even more suitable as the best bad guy in the franchise.

Mike Barnes

Played By Sean Kanan

Sean Kanan's Mike Barnes was a major villain in The Karate Kid Part III, hired by Terry Silver owing to his reputation as an especially competent, and vicious, young martial artist. Of all the characters from The Karate Kid movies who return in Cobra Kai, Mike Barnes is perhaps the most changed. He's matured from an angry teen into a well-adjusted adult, having settled down with his wife and opened a furniture store. He still has flashes of his former arrogance following his return in Cobra Kai season 5, but overall is a Johnny Lawrence-like example of a Karate Kid villain who turned their life around.

Dennis De Guzman

Played By William Christopher Ford

It wasn't only major characters from The Karate Kid movies who came back for Cobra Kai. Alongside Terry Silver and Mike Barnes, a secondary antagonist from The Karate Kid III, Dennis de Guzman (William Christopher Ford) also returned for the sequel spin-off. Dennis was one of Silver's Henchmen, and was silent throughout his time on screen, perfectly playing the part of hired muscle. Dennis de Guzman returns in Cobra Kai season 6, and is still working for Terry Silver. Little has changed for his character, though his presence was a welcome and fun nostalgic link between Cobra Kai and The Karate Kid movies.

Darryl Vidal

Played By Darryl Vidal

The presence of Darryl Vidal in Cobra Kai shows just how deep the creative team dug into The Karate Kid when finding characters to bring back. Darryl Vidal appeared in the original 1984 The Karate Kid, and was an incredibly minor presence. It was Darryl who Johnny Lawrence defeated at the 1984 All Valley Tournament to face off against Daniel LaRusso in the final. Darryl Vidal makes an incredibly brief appearance in Cobra Kai season 6 as the referee of the Sekai Taikai final, but him being there helps add to the strong sense of continuity between the show and original movies.

Ali Mills

Played By Elisabeth Shue

Cobra Kai didn't just bring back The Karate Kid characters who took part in the various tournaments and bouts in the films. After being teased in season 2, actress Elisabeth Shue debuted in Cobra Kai season 3 as Ali Mills, the love interest of both Daniel LaRusso and Johnny Lawrence in 1984's The Karate Kid. A pediatric surgeon in adulthood, Ali serves an incredibly important role in the narrative of Cobra Kai, as it's through meeting Ali once again that Daniel and (especially) Johnny are able to work through some of their issues that aren't directly related to karate.

Chozen Toguchi

Played By Yuji Okumoto

Chozen Toguchi was the main villain in The Karate Kid Part II, but when he returned in Cobra Kai season 3 he's a protagonist through and through, helping Daniel LaRusso and Johnny Lawrence secure the future of their dojos and honor the legacy of Mr. Miyagi. Chozen's ourney from franchise villain to franchise hero between The Karate Kid II and Cobra Kai not only helped link the movies to the show, but also demonstrated just how evil characters like Kreese and Silver truly were, since Chozen was the only anatgonist in the film franchise not directly linked to them or the early years of the Cobra Kai dojo.