AS Cobra Kai prepares to release the final five episodes early next year, its stars, Ralph Macchio AND William Zabkapromised that the show will end on a positive note for fans.
Speaking at a panel at Sony Pictures Entertainment, Macchio and Zabka, along with the show’s executive producers, hinted that the explosive finale of Season 6, Episode 10 sets the stage for a whirlwind final batch of episodes.
Macchio said: “You have to hit rock bottom to get back up, and that’s pretty much where we are. I’m very excited. It’s set up to embrace that great ’80s cinematic ending that I have a feeling we’ll find and move on. It seems right to land the plane, the actual “Cobra Kai”… [and that] this chapter is ending.
Season six has been split into three segments, with the first batch of five episodes premiering in July and the second part earlier this month. As the third part of season six approaches, Zabka agrees that it was “the right time to end it and the right way to end it.
“[The producers] stick the landing in an unexpected, uplifting and honest way… It’s a fantastic ending for everyone and we’re so grateful to have had six seasons to tell the whole story.
The second part of season six ended with a shocking moment: an unexpected death in the middle of a global karate tournament that stuns everyone, including the show’s villains John Kreese and Terry Silver.
Creator Jon Hurwitzwho serves as executive producer along with Josh Heald AND Hayden Schlossbergexplained:
“We wanted to make it unpredictable in the future. What does it mean? This is the question. We have all these characters that we’ve followed all these years and this tournament has meant so much to all of them in all these different ways.
“And then it ends like this. So we have five episodes left to figure out, will they put the pieces back together? Will the tournament resume? How do these characters react to what just happened?”
Hurwitz said the death wasn’t just for shock value. “It was all based on where our characters were and where we were sending them as we landed on the ship,” he said.
Episode 10’s massive fight sequence was perhaps the biggest the show has ever done, which is saying a lot, given that the show focused on the art of karate, the rivalries, and the fights that came with it . Heald said:
“It was a painstaking effort aligned with our director, Sherwin Shilati. And in the writer’s room, making sure that every punch, every kick, every time the camera moves has to be motivated. We can’t just have background artist number three come in and punch someone.
“We have to set it up in previous episodes to even get to that place. You have to care about all these little mini moments and not just the crazy two-on-ones.
The series was also the culmination of the long relationship between Daniel LaRusso and Johnny Lawrence, a rivalry that began 40 years ago in The Karate Kid. Schlossberg said he, Heald and Hurwitz worked hard to add multiple dimensions to all of these characters, including taking villainous characters and turning things on their heads to see them in a different light.
“Johnny Lawrence was the antagonist in the original ‘Karate Kid’ and now you root for him. We really get into the heads of all our characters, including the villains.
“It’s a lot of fun in the writer’s room, we always talk about raising the stakes but also keeping it real. And you’ll see that in the last five episodes we’ve taken it to the next level, but ultimately it’s going to hit home in a really relatable way.
AS Cobra Kai Ultimately, Zabka said the experience of revisiting a character from his youth was a “pleasant surprise.”
“As an actor, being able to play such a three-dimensional, heartfelt, funny character and all those things, that’s what you sign up for when you do it. You want to make an impact on someone. The fact that it’s tied to ‘Karate Kid’ and has all these cool themes and fan base and everything just makes it surreal.
Macchio isn’t done with his iconic character Daniel LaRusso yet. He will then be seen reviving the opposite character Jackie Chan in next year’s service Karate Kid: Legends. Macchio said of the film:
“I have walked the streets in these shoes for more than 40 years. And so I always talk about honesty and truth in the character, and that’s always what I’m looking for. I just want to know where the character went. I’ll do somersaults, wear face paint, jump off the cliff and punch Johnny in the face.
“If it serves his narrative, fine. But where does it land? And that’s where the comfort was because we were always working towards the same goal. And this is why [the producers] treatment.
“They care so much about these original films and these characters. And that’s why we have the richness in our performances and storytelling.
The final episodes of Cobra Kai will be released on Netflix on February 13, 2025.
via: Variety
by Jessica Fisher
Source: Geek Tyrant
Lloyd Grunewald is an author at “The Fashion Vibes”. He is a talented writer who focuses on bringing the latest entertainment-related news to his readers. With a deep understanding of the entertainment industry and a passion for writing, Lloyd delivers engaging articles that keep his readers informed and entertained.
