"Not happening" - Ralph Macchio agreed to do the Cobra Kai Season 6 Part 3 finale scene under one special condition

Ralph Macchio, who plays The Karate Kid franchise and Cobra Kai's main man, Daniel LaRusso, originally refused to do a crucial scene in Cobra Kai Season 6 Part 3. When first presented with the idea, Macchio, in an interview with Collider, said:

"Not happening."

His reluctance stemmed from worries over whether the character of Mr. Miyagi, as portrayed by deceased Pat Morita, was treated with respect and sensitivity.

Macchio has always held Pat Morita, and his understanding of Mr. Miyagi, in high regard. With Cobra Kai, the character has been seen in numerous ways, such as by a nod, flashback, or by what he taught Daniel. But reviving the character digitally was something that had to be done with consideration.

Macchio wanted to ensure that any cameo Mr. Miyagi would make was story-oriented and not contrived or done only for nostalgia. He mentioned in the interview how when episode 15 was being outlined, he had mentioned to the show creators Josh Heald, Hayden Schlossberg, and Jon Hurwitz:

"Don't come to me unless this victory hinges on there's no way Johnny could have any of this without Daniel and Sensei Miyagi. I need that."

The scene and its significance with Cobra Kai

The showstopping moment is when a digitally recreated Mr. Miyagi comes to the rescue of Daniel LaRusso during an action-fighting sequence. The scene is a callback to The Karate Kid, when Daniel was similarly saved by Mr. Miyagi.

Since Mr. Miyagi is an iconic part of the franchise, Macchio and the producers of the series - Josh Heald, Jon Hurwitz, and Hayden Schlossberg - made sure the scene was true to the character's origins. Macchio said,

"The only way is to go all in. When I read it, I knew exactly what we needed, just like when I walked out with the black gi. We had one shot. It was the end of the day. 'We're into overtime. We’ve got to go. We got one shot,' and I knew what that one shot was, and I knew how I had to present myself in it and have that sense of, 'I am here for the greater good. This is bigger than me and my thought. This is about helping my neighbor, my best friend.'"

The moment matters a great deal because it's a circle-of-life moment for Daniel. The character has been grappling with the philosophy of Mr. Miyagi, which in turn has impacted his growth as a fighter and teacher. Calling upon Mr. Miyagi in this way is meant to show how much Daniel is still drawn to him.

Collaboration to honor Mr. Miyagi’s legacy

Macchio's involvement in the scene was conditional upon the role of Mr. Miyagi; he insisted that the character be portrayed in a way that would not stray from the original essence of the movies. The team collaborated with Macchio to create a balance between nostalgia and narration so that the sequence would fit into the themes of mentorship and determination established at the heart of The Karate Kid series.

A lot of effort was required to digitally recreate Mr. Miyagi, and the team took much care in getting the likeness and demeanor of the character across as respectfully as possible. The scene was constructed in consultation with specialists in digital effects and people with knowledge about Morita's life. Footage and lines from existing films were used to help increase the realism of the character's recreation.

In an interview with Variety, one of the show's creators, Josh Heald, spoke about the deepfake technology that was used to bring Mr. Miyagi back.

He said,

"There's a VFX company that has a deepfake technology. They start producing it, and we give a lot of notes. 'The forehead here — look at Pat, look at this.' We're looking at reference photos. 'Here's Mr. Miyagi at night from The Karate Kid, the way his body moves, the way the light and the moon are.' You're getting really micro, down to the way that the head is shaped and the hair sits on the head."

"We went through 50 iterations and then we bring in a voice-soundalike actor to deliver the lines and emote like Pat Morita might and like we remembered."

Heald added,

"Then you apply an AI filter that uses archival audio from Pat Morita to get that voice dialed as close as possible. At the end of the day, you're not actually recreating a person. We're paying homage to a hero, and you're trying to get as close as possible, while the audience knows that obviously he's not really there."

"Ralph loved the idea of he and Pat sharing screen time together again with the new technologies that we have. We loved the idea of Daniel needing his final lesson from Miyagi. Miyagi comes to him and they fight alongside one another and he gives some final words of wisdom that help Daniel move on."

Future of The Karate Kid franchise

While Cobra Kai has ended, the Karate Kid franchise will go on with fresh productions. There is a new movie, Karate Kid: Legends, scheduled to hit the screens on May 30, 2025, and Ralph Macchio is coming back to play Daniel LaRusso. The production will likely have new stories under the existing structure of the franchise.

It will introduce new characters, while continuing to delve into mentorship and self-betterment themes. While no plot lines have been announced, Macchio indicated that it will be an homage to the original films yet have stories that new and existing fans will find entertaining.

Spin-offs within the Cobra Kai universe have also been speculated. The success of the show has led to the possibility of creating other characters and tales, perhaps in prequels or independent tales involving characters such as Johnny Lawrence or the other Cobra Kai dojo members.

Reflections on the series finale

Macchio attributed the success of the series to the commitment of the cast and crew. He also credited the fan support throughout the series and assured everyone that the final season was intended to remain loyal to the theme of the franchise. Cobra Kai has done much to retain the popularity of The Karate Kid story, and its final season is an embodiment of the central themes of the series.

The show has been praised for successfully contemporizing The Karate Kid narrative without undermining its character. Through the new characters and narrations combined with legacy characters, Cobra Kai was able to find the equilibrium that bridged the various generations of audiences.

All six seasons of Cobra Kai can now be streamed on Netflix.

Edited by Anshika Jain

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