As fans of Cobra Kai are aware, Yuji Okumoto appeared as his Karate Kid Part II character Chozen Toguchi during the show’s third season, which premiered on January 1. Throughout the 1986 film, Chozen antagonizes Daniel LaRusso (Ralph Macchio) and eventually threatens Kumiko’s (Tamlyn Tomita) life at the Oban festival. Daniel, however, is able to defeat Chozen and saves his girlfriend’s life.
Over three decades later, Kumiko reintroduces the former rivals in Okinawa, Japan. While there appears to be some hostility between the karate instructors, they eventually come to an understanding. Chozen also teaches Daniel Miyagi-Do techniques that he previously did not know.
Tamlyn Tomita Recently Commented on Chozen Returning To the ‘Karate Kid’ Franchise
Getty Tamlyn Tomita strikes a pose for the 25th Anniversary of “The Joy Luck Club” event held at The Samuel Goldwyn Theater.
During a January Los Angeles Times interview, Tamlyn Tomita commented on whether Chozen would appear again in the Karate Kid franchise. She shared that she would be interested in the character having his own Netflix spin-off series revolving around his life as an Okinawan sensei.
“I would like to see the Netflix show Miyagi-Do… with Chozen. Because he’s the real marriage, the interconnectivity, of what it means to be East and West, karate being embraced by both cultures and what that means,” explained the actress.
She also implied that she wanted Chozen’s storyline to continue in Cobra Kai Season 4, which is currently in production.
“Let’s get [East and West] together … let’s see where they’re going to take us, the audience, for Season 4,” said the actress.
In a Recent Interview, Okumoto Spoke About Portraying Chozen on ‘Cobra Kai’
YouTubeYuji Okumoto and Ralph Macchio share a scene in ‘Cobra Kai’ Season 3.
In a December 2020 interview with Entertainment Weekly, Okumoto spoke about being approached to play Chozen on Cobra Kai in 2019. He noted that while he “was always hoping that the writers and producers would bring back Chozen,” he did have some reservations.
“My biggest concern, however, was how Chozen would be portrayed. And after talking with the creators of the show I thought they really had a good grasp of which direction the character should go,” explained the actor. “So when I got the script I thought they did a terrific job with the dialogue and creating a very interesting story line for Chozen. They were able to incorporate a sense of humor and danger which made the character Chozen a hell of a lot of fun to play. I just didn’t want him to be a stereotype, kind of a one-dimensional character.”
During the same interview, he also discussed acting alongside Ralph Macchio. He told the publication:
It’s like reuniting with an old friend — not that we’re old, mind you. [Laughs] The thing I love about working with someone like Ralph is he’s a pro. He doesn’t b**** and moan about stuff, he just does the work. I can’t say enough about how fortunate I was to be brought onto the show and to be reunited with him.
He went on to say that he traveled to Atlanta, Georgia, where a majority of the show is filmed, to practice his action-packed sequences with Macchio before he started filming for the third season.
“We had a chance to get together and rehearse, and then catch up and talk story in between kicking each other’s a****,” said the 61-year-old.
Okumoto also expressed interest in joining the Cobra Kai cast again, stating that he would do it “in a heartbeat.”
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