Who is the villainest villain of all the villains in the ‘Cobra Kai’-'Karate Kid' universe?
The line between good and evil is never blurred more than it is in “Cobra Kai” and its forerunner, “The Karate Kid” film franchise, which features some of the more memorable villains in film history.
When the original “Karate Kid” movie came out in 1984, it was pretty clear: William Zabka’s Johnny Lawrence was the bad guy, the bully who picked on Ralph Macchio’s new kid in town, Daniel LaRusso, while Martin Kove’s sensei John Kreese was the psychopathic adult pulling the strings.
The idea of who was a hero and who was a bad guy was a formula that resurfaced in the rest of the original film series. But a funny thing happened as the years went by — a movement that championed the notion that Johnny was the victim and Daniel was the bad guy.
It grew in videos for the song “Sweep the Leg” by the band No More Kings and episodes of “How I Met Your Mother,” which featured Neil Patrick Harris’ Barney Stinson espousing his belief that Johnny was the actual “Karate Kid,” and even led to an appearance with Zabka and Macchio on the series.
But have no illusion, with “The Karate Kid” franchise having moved into the “Cobra Kai” world (and with a new movie on the horizon, too): There are plenty of villains, no matter your point of view. Fortunately, we have done the heavy lifting and ranked the villainest of the villains. So read on and enjoy, but, if you don’t agree, please don’t come at us with us a crane kick.
10. Dutch
Dutch is one of Johnny’s cronies at Cobra Kai in the original “Karate Kid.” We don’t know a ton about him, but whenever we see him, he’s ticked off, possessing a pent-up fury that makes you think in retrospect that he’s one of the first people to have ‘roid rage, a few years before that was even a term people knew.
“You’re dead meat,” he menacingly tells Daniel after accosting him in the locker room before the All Valley Karate Tournament starts. When they meet in the tournament, Dutch doesn’t even bow to Daniel, so he also has poor sportsmanship, to boot. In “Cobra Kai,” we learn he’s in jail, so, yeah, he turned out as badly as could be expected.
9. Ali Mills
Yeah, we're calling this one. Not that she planned it, but Ali was the source of the friction between Johnny and Daniel in “The Karate Kid.” She’s extremely likable and many a teenage boy crushed on her hard back in the day, so it’s not difficult to understand why they both pined for her.
She’s also painted in a negative light when we learn she dumped Daniel for a football player at the beginning of “The Karate Kid Part II,” wiping away some of the goodwill audiences had toward her. Closure would come during her guest appearance on Season 3 of "Cobra Kai," though, reminding us why we love her and "The Karate Kid."
8. Eli ‘Hawk’ Moskowitz
Hawk is a nerd in “Cobra Kai” who does a total 180 and becomes one bad dude, rocking a gigantic back tattoo and mohawk that could be spotted from an orbiting satellite. He grows into himself, exuding cockiness and arrogance, while intimidating others, classic traits of any villain. He certainly looks the part of a villain for a good chunk of the show, although he does come back around and realize the error of his ways. His reformation is one of many the characters on "Cobra Kai" undergo.
7. Daniel LaRusso
Some people point to Daniel as being the villain, and there is some evidence to back that up from the original film. He interfered with Johnny’s quest to win back Ali, he turned the shower on him while Johnny was in the bathroom and, once they reunited on “Cobra Kai,” we see he’s a success who rubs Johnny the wrong way and continues to pursue matters that he probably shouldn’t, setting the stage for a lot of the drama on the series. His inability to let sleeping dogs lie is problematic. Good guys can just let things go, right?
6. Mike Barnes
Barnes is a cocksure and perpetually keyed-up antagonist in “The Karate Kid Part III,” a sort of multi-Xeroxed version of what Dutch may be if we knew more about him. The movie is considered by many to be the most flawed entry in the film series (although not everyone agrees with that assessment), which stunts Barnes’ placement on this list.
He’s hell-bent on taking Daniel’s All Valley Karate Tournament title and will stop at nothing to do so. It’s a bit comical, and Barnes did tone down his act when we saw him again as a meek furniture salesman in Season 5 of “Cobra Kai.”
5. Chozen Toguchi
Speaking of toning it down, perhaps no character in the “Cobra Kai”-“Karate Kid” oeuvre has done so as much as Chozen. He’s another entry in the testosterone-fueled roster of villains, making life miserable for Daniel in “The Karate Kid Part II,” delighting in harassing him during his visit with Mr. Miyagi to Okinawa.
As a follow-up to Johnny, Chozen is appropriately threatening and a seemingly bigger challenge because he appears to be completely indomitable before Daniel defeats him in the film's climax. But the years mellowed him out and he became a calming presence when he returned in “Cobra Kai.” But, man, in his '80s peak, he was a terror.
4. Tory Nichols
Peyton List gives plenty of depth to her portrayal as troubled teen Tory, a sort of modern Johnny who is not afraid to open a can of you-know-what whenever, wherever. Complex and daunting with an interminable sneer and somehow seeking her own sense of redemption, Tory’s love triangle with Robby and Sam adds layers to the show while she is someone who gets viewers riled up even as her behavior straddles the line between bullying and misunderstood teenager.
3. Terry Silver
It seems far-fetched: A successful businessman goes to great lengths to avenge the downfall of an old friend. But that’s exactly what happened in “The Karate Kid Part III,” when the wealthy Silver, played by Thomas Ian Griffith, deploys all of his resources to take down Daniel for ruining Kreese’s life after winning the All Valley tournament.
He puts in motion a complex and time-consuming plan that is weird and intricately plotted, but, hey, Silver is an over-the-top character. He seems reformed when we first see him in Season 4 of “Cobra Kai,” but then the wheels truly come off and we see how dangerous he is, helping him zoom up this list. This is one bad guy.
2. Johnny Lawrence
Johnny is a classic bully and defined for a generation what a bad guy is in “The Karate Kid.” At least that’s the well-told idea, right?
Zabka, of course, portrayed some of the best goons of the 1980s, also starring as a villain in “Back to School” and “Just One of the Guys.” But “The Karate Kid” is his magnum opus, his "Moby Dick," a tutorial for fans and haters alike. He’s mean, cruel and savage and leads a pack of bullies who make Daniel’s life miserable.
It’s not until “Cobra Kai” that we learn his backstory and start to understand there is more than meets the eye. He’s also quite funny and hits a nerve with viewers who remember him as a cocky and seemingly invincible teen, but now see him as a middle-aged man who’s been beaten down by life, a fish out of water in the modern world. He’s a villain with a story, a villain you can love to hate and love to love.
1. John Kreese
Kreese is the engine that makes everything go, the spark that ignites a feud whose smoke appeared to die down, but resurfaces as a conflagration passed down to a new generation of teenage karate enthusiasts. He is ruthless and relentless when training his Cobra Kai proteges in the original movie, behavior that cues Johnny and his pals to treat Daniel the way they do.
Whereas Silver sometimes smiles and plays the part of a good guy to fool his adversaries, Kreese doesn’t keep the diabolical attitude under such lock and key. He is always mad and his “no mercy” mantra thrives with impressionable kids, whether in the ‘80s or the 2010s and 2020s. A Vietnam vet, we learn in “Cobra Kai” that he’s carrying more baggage than Samsonite, turning Johnny against him and orchestrating his own escape from prison. His menacing mug can still cause shudders decades later. He’s bad news and we can’t get enough.
This article was originally published on TODAY.com
