SDCC 2019: 'Cobra Kai' star Martin Kove shares how season 3 will explore John Kreese's backstory and the origin of the dojos
When Martin Kove played the iconic John Kreese in the cult classic, 'The Karate Kid' movie series in the '80s, he became an instant fan favorite. His return as the baddie Kreese in the final episode of 'Cobra Kai', season 1, the martial arts dramedy, saw much more dynamism. In an exclusive interview with MEA World Wide(MEAWW), Kove, who was present at the San Diego Comic-Con 2019 shed light on what the fans can expect from the third season.
"In season 2, you saw him (Kreese) in eight out of 10 episodes," he said. "It’s the framework that he’s in. He’s now on top of everybody else’s suffering and he’s not a villain."
Kove also said that he never looked at Kreese as a villain. "I never look at his character as a villain. He just had a problem with Johnny Lawrence violating the integrity of Cobra Kai. He loved Johnny Lawrence as much as he loved his own son. But there’s one thing that’s more important to him and that’s Cobra Kai.
The 73-year old also spoke about how Daniel LaRusso's (Ralph Macchio) Miyagi-Do is different from Cobra Kai. "Miyagi- Do is a defensive art. But according to Kreese in Cobra Kai, Karate is an offensive art, and what he teaches is to get on and fight."
According to Kove, his character is also passionate about the dojo. He also revealed that the upcoming season will see LaRusso heading to Okinawa (the birthplace of his sensei Mr. Miyagi, played by Pat Morita) and that the series will deal with the origins of Cobra Kai and Miyagi-Do.
In addition, he also said that Kreese will have a backstory. "You’re going to learn a lot about my character. It touches Vietnam and it has a lot of surprises," he shared.
The production of the third season for the show is set to go on floors in August.
Set 34 years after the events of 'The Karate Kid', the series follows the reopening of the Cobra Kai karate dojo by Lawrence (William Zabka) and the rekindling of his old rivalry with LaRusso (Ralph Macchio).
Created by Jon Hurwitz, Hayden Schlossberg and Josh Heald, the series garnered positive reviews, not just from the fans who were familiar with the iconic movie series, but also from new audiences. The seasons also saw a host of new teenage characters who had their own storylines on the show.
'Cobra Kai' Season 3 is set to premiere on YouTube Premium in September 2020.