Elisabeth Shue explains how The Boys led to their highly anticipated appearance in Cobra Kai season 3. Once a web series for YouTube, Cobra Kai is the sequel to the beloved Karate Kid franchise. Set thirty years after the films, Cobra Kai centers on childhood rivals Johnny Lawrence (William Zabka) and Daniel LaRusso (Ralph Macchio) as their troubled relationship is rekindled when they take over rival dojos. After its first two seasons, Netflix took Cobra Kai back and made him an internet sensation. The third season launched just a few days ago, on New Year’s Day, and it brought a lot of surprises.
Perhaps the most exciting part of Cobra Kai season 3 was the return of Ali from Elisabeth Shue. In the original Karate Kid, Ali is Johnny’s ex and Daniel’s new love interest; Daniel’s feelings for his help start his rivalry with Johnny. Although Shue did not appear in any more Kid Karate movies, Ali’s presence grew large, and that even continued to enter Cobra Kai. The End of Cobra Kai season 2 revealed that Ali had befriended Johnny on Facebook, leading fans to wonder if Shue would return. After a whole season of hype, Shue finally brought Ali back in the last two episodes of Cobra Kai season 3.
Shue initially didn’t plan on appearing on Cobra Kai , but in a new interview with ESE , she revealed an experience on another TV show that led her to reconsider. Shue starred in the first season of Amazon Prime The Boys , and while filming the pilot, director Dan Tractenberg asked him if he would be making the jump to Cobra Kai . His particular enthusiasm caught his eye. Shue said:
Tractenberg’s love for The Karate Kid is a good example of how much movies can mean to one person, and it clearly affected Shue’s perspective. As Shue said, he hadn’t given much thought to a Cobra Kai appearance, but it wasn’t until he realized how much it would mean to fans that he changed his mind. In fact, audiences were delighted to see Ali come back and be alongside Johnny and Daniel once again, proving that he was definitely the right choice for Shue. Although his stint with the Children might have come to an unfortunate end, it was beneficial in more ways than one.
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Ali’s Cobra Kai return turned out to be even more vital than simple fan service, as it helped facilitate a truce between Daniel and Johnny. Considering the conflict looming for the two enemies-turned-allies in Cobra Kai season 4, it’s definitely a relief that they are together rather than apart. Whether or not Shue will appear again remains to be seen, but if he doesn’t, he at least made this excellent curtain call in the Karate Kid universe.
