The audience at New York Comic Con got a special treat during the Sony Pictures panel: the first trailer for Karate Kid: Legends. The crowd got the exclusive first look at this highly anticipated project, which blends the Cobra Kai universe and the reboot universe. Unfortunately, the trailer hasn’t been made available online (yet), but we do have a description courtesy of Variety and Deadline.
The Karate Kid: Legends trailer naturally focuses on the three leads (Ben Wang, Ralph Macchio, and Jackie Chan). It begins with Chan’s character (Mr. Han) recruiting Wang’s character (Li Fong) at a martial arts academy. We’re reintroduced to Macchio’s character (Daniel LaRusso), who teams up with Mr. Han to help mentor Li Fong, but their training styles don’t always mesh. We also see a glimpse of a portrait of Mr. Miyagi, as well as some fight scenes and martial arts matches. As Li Fong faces off against some bullies, we hear Mr. Han say, “In life, you only have one question: Is it worth fighting for or not?“
The film stars Ben Wang (American Born Chinese) as a young teenager from China who finds identity and strength in martial arts. During his journey of self-discovery, Wang’s character meets a disciplined martial arts master. Jackie Chan and Ralph Macchio reprising their roles of Mr. Han and Daniel LaRusso. Joshua Jackson (Fatal Attraction) and Ming-Na Wen (The Mandalorian) also appear in the movie, alongside Sadie Stanley (Cruel Summer) as the romantic lead. Jonathan Entwistle (The End of the F***ing World) directed the movie from a script by Rob Lieber (Alexander and the Terrible, Horrible, No Good Very Bad Day).
Getting to work with Jackie Chan was a huge honour for Ralph Macchio. “Jackie Chan is a legend, just to have that opportunity was exciting. He was wonderful,” said Macchio earlier this summer. “Lot of heart, lot of soul and caring, I will say that about Jackie. He loves being on set and it was like his first day every day. I love seeing that at his age and time of his career because I like to try to bring that as well, but a great young cast on that one, and we’ll see where it goes.“
The first five episodes of the sixth and final season of Cobra Kai debuted on Netflix this summer. Part 2 will follow on November 15th, and Part 3 will conclude the series next year. Nothing is official, but creators Hayden Schlossberg, Josh Heald and Jon Hurwitz have been entertaining the idea of more spinoffs, including a prequel series centered on Mr. Miyagi.
Karate Kid: Legends will hit theaters on May 30, 2025.