Though Mr. Miyagi, the soulful sensei from the original “Karate Kid” films, doesn’t physically appear in “Cobra Kai” — actor Pat Morita passed away in 2005 — his influence is felt all over the Netflix martial arts series in the teachings he imparted to his students, including Daniel LaRusso (Ralph Macchio).
However, in the recently dropped official trailer of “Cobra Kai” season 6, it seems like Daniel’s old karate instructor will be making a metaphysical cameo in the upcoming episodes, which will be released in three parts for the show’s grand finale, starting with the first five episodes on Thursday, July 18.
In the trailer, you see Daniel and Chozen Toguchi (Yuji Okumoto) discover a box from their old instructor hidden below the floorboards of Miyagi Do. “Miyagi San buried secrets for a reason,” Chozen says. “If we open, anything is possible.”
“Cobra Kai” co-creator Hayden Schlossberg discussed the upcoming Miyagi mystery with ScreenRant: “We came at the Mr. Miyagi storyline in season 6 from a place of trying to understand the past, while not having all the answers, and it’s very frustrating for Daniel to find out all these secrets about Mr. Miyagi that he had kept from Daniel, while not having all the answers at his disposal.”
Daniel’s realization that his mentor, “who he thought was the most perfect, ideal person of all time,” actually had flaws will be a big conflict for the character in season 6, Schlossberg revealed. “And I think, for us, we were okay with that, because we always assumed that Mr. Miyagi was a human being, and that he wasn’t necessarily born a sage, he wasn’t born as somebody who had all the answers.”
In a recent interview with Collider, Macchio discussed Miyagi’s influence on his character and how that will affect Daniel’s personal arc going into “Cobra Kai” season 6. “[Daniel is] always referencing Miyagi and the greatness of Miyagi, and all this through his students and even his friends. Early on in the series, there were these scenes I really embraced and enjoyed with Tanner [Buchanan], Robby, when I was taking Miyagi’s teaching and doing this sort of LaRusso, Jersey spin on them, whether it was the Bonsai trees or training, and I really enjoyed finding Daniel’s way of channeling the Miyagi-isms and the references.”
“But there are times he dives so deep into that legacy that it’s a struggle to differentiate, as you say, his own beliefs, and I think this season opens up that can of worms where he is second-guessing things about his mentor that he can never really find the truth about and has to come to grips with that all personally,” Macchio added. “It’s a big arc this season, and heading into Part 2 and certainly resolving in Part 3. I’m excited for the fans to see that.”
One of the biggest Netflix shows, “Cobra Kai” will bow out with the first part of season 6 on July 18. The second part will follow on November 28, with the final five installments hitting the streamer on a to-be-announced date in 2025. Tom’s Guide will keep you posted on all updates surrounding the sixth season, including behind-the-scenes tidbits, casting intel, showrunner insights and more. In the meantime, you can revisit the first five seasons of the martial arts comedy-drama with a Netflix subscription.