PALEY CENTER FOR MEDIA, THE: COBRA KAI: SEASON TWO PREMIERE SCREENING AND CONVERSATION {LONG VERSION}
Summary
One in a series of evenings and special screenings presented at The Paley Center for Media in Los Angeles. This evening celebrates "Cobra Kai," the comedy-drama series about the rivalry between two dojo owners, based on and continuing the story of "The Karate Kid" (1984) and its sequels.
Host Rene Reyes (vice-president of programming, The Paley Center for Media) offers opening remarks and introduces Susanne Daniels (Global Head of Original Content, YouTube). Daniels briefly discusses the origins of YouTube's interest in the series before welcoming executive producers/creators/writers/directors Josh Heald, Jon Hurwitz, and Hayden Schlossberg to the stage. The trio introduces the first two episodes of season two, "Mercy Part II" and "Back in Black," which are then screened in their entirety. (For synopses and credits, see ACCNUM 136685 and 136896.)
After the screening, Reyes introduces Erik Amaya (columnist, Rotten Tomatoes), who moderates the following panelists: Hurwitz, Heald, and Schlossberg; and cast members Ralph Macchio (Daniel LaRusso), William Zabka (Johnny Lawrence), Martin Kove (John Kreese), Mary Mouser (Samantha LaRusso), Courtney Henggeler (Amanda LaRusso), Xolo Maridueña (Miguel Diaz), Tanner Buchanan (Robby Keene), Jacob Bertrand (Eli "Hawk" Moskowitz), and Gianni DeCenzo (Demetri Alexopoulos).
The panelists touch on such topics as: the decision to set season two in a "truncated time period" of one summer vacation; Macchio's return to the home of the late Mr. Miyagi (Pat Morita) and his ownership of the famous yellow 1948 Ford Super De Luxe car; the evolution of Johnny's "no mercy" mantra; "reincarnating" Cobra Kai founder John Kreese with new ideas, and the challenge of concealing Kove's surprise appearance at the end of season one from fans; Amanda's future with the car dealership; Maridueña's interest in portraying an authentic, non-stereotypical Latino Angeleno, as also seen in Hurwitz and Schlossberg's three "Harold and Kumar" feature films; Mouser's thoughts on Samantha's personal journey from "villain to hero," including her bond with Miguel; Daniel's role as father figure to the troubled Robby; Bertrand's sense that Eli is "trapped inside of himself," leading to his remarkable transformation in season one; the writers' use of story elements from the not-so-well-received "The Karate Kid Part III" (1989), including the character of Terry Silver (Thomas Ian Griffith); the cast's favorite moments, including Johnny and Daniel's "Odd Couple" relationship and Zabka's memories of hiding an injury in order to continue performing in a scene without a stunt double; praise for the writers' complex understanding of the characters, and their excitement at getting to write "this level of fan fiction" of the original films; why the creators had to sell the show as a half-hour comedy despite its dramatic elements; the advantages of having full 30-minute episodes, rather than cutting it down to 21-22 minutes to allow for commercials; the remarkable cement-truck scene and other harsh training methods, intended to be the "opposite" of Mr. Miyagi's nature-based education process; and the challenges of Eli's new mohawk hairstyle.
Questions from the audience then lead to a discussion of the following topics, among others: the pros and cons of having actual teenage actors portray teenage characters; what other characters the actors might like to portray; whether the show might return to Okinawa, as seen in "The Karate Kid Part II" (1986); further elaboration on Eli's personal journey and tensions with his fellow students; praise for screenwriter and franchise creator Robert Mark Kamen and stunt coordinators Hiro Koda and Jahnel Curfman, who are highly knowledgeable about the many forms of martial arts, unlike the writers; incorporating "bits of everything," including Muay Thai and actual karate, into the various characters' individual fighting styles; and Mouser's memories of her vigorous series of training classes before filming season one.
Details
- NETWORK: N/A
- DATE: November 30, 1999 7:00 PM
- RUNNING TIME: 2:05:10
- COLOR/B&W: Color
- CATALOG ID: 136671
- GENRE: Seminars
- SUBJECT HEADING: N/A
- SERIES RUN: N/A
- COMMERCIALS: N/A
CREDITS
- Rene Reyes … Host
- Erik Amaya … Moderator
- Josh Heald … Panelist
- Jon Hurwitz … Panelist
- Hayden Schlossberg … Panelist
- Courtney Henggeler … Panelist
- Xolo Maridueña … Panelist
- Mary Mouser … Panelist
- Tanner Buchanan … Panelist
- Jacob Bertrand … Panelist
- Gianni DeCenzo … Panelist
- Martin Kove … Panelist
- William Zabka … Panelist
- Ralph Macchio … Panelist
- Susanne Daniels … Guest
- Jahnel Curfman
- Thomas Ian Griffith
- Robert Mark Kamen
- Hiro Koda
- Pat Morita