Exclusive: The Cast of "Cobra Kai" Break Down The Season 3 Finale Fight Sequence
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*Major spoilers for season 3 of Cobra Kai below!*
Talk about a major showdown! Fans of Cobra Kai got to see one of the biggest fights in The Karate Kid history thanks to the season three finale and things are never going to be the same in the series. In one huge take down, the students of Miyagi-do, Eagle Fang, and Cobra Kai participated in a giant fight that is unlike anything we've seen in the Cobra Kai franchise. Seventeen got to talk to some of the stars of the series on how the fight sequence came to light and what it took for them to film it.
"Everyone had their specific beats that they would work out. I honestly don't know any of Xolo's [Maridueña] choreography and I don't think he knows any of mine," Jacob Bertrand, who plays Eli "Hawk" said. "Everyone has a little bits and pieces and then Hiro [Koda] and Jahnel [Curfman], our stunt coordinators, go around with this little camera so we can shoot a preview of it. Hiro will take that and to show the writers. 'Hey. what do you think of it?' Then it's just working on all the beats like, 'Okay, you need to kick him. Fill in this beat, linger there a little longer. Now you got to get hurt."
"I was just getting punched in the stomach a bunch," Xolo, who plays Miguel, added.
"I was really looking forward to the the episode 10 fight. I think we always are, because that's where you really get to [show off your skills]. It's fun. For us, as the actors, it's the culmination of all the work we put in throughout the season and now you get to go kick a*s," Mary Mouser, who plays Samantha LaRusso said.
Xolo actually revealed that the fight was meant to be somewhere else completely different.
"A lot of people don't know this but that fight was originally supposed to be in the Miyagi-do backyard. It was supposed to be raining and at night, but it just ended up being too much of a liability trying to have like 20 kids running around in the mud," he said. "Also, due to continuity, particularly with the rain, it just seemed like we didn't have any time. I really commend our son coordinators, Hiro and Jahnel for making it happen. They found this out a day and a half before we actually had to film it, so they had to re-choreograph everything in a totally different environment. Kudos to them and for making it happen. Our show wouldn't be the same without them."
The cast and crew also had to be ready to "fight" multiple times due to all of the logistics that goes into it.
"On the day we film so many takes, because if one part doesn't really work, it affects the entire thing. There's one part of the fight where I know Xolo and Joe [Seo] are moving this table out of the way, then the camera spins around, they put it back. Me and Gianni [Decenzo] are running behind the camera going through this corridor, closing the door and hiding. There's a ton of stuff especially with this one because there was all these moving parts and it's in a house," Jacob continued.
While fight scenes are really planned out far in advance, sometimes, things don't click right away, especially when it comes to props.
"I kept smashing out one of our stunt guys, Tony Vo. He's awesome," Jacob said.
"He had cuts on his head!" Xolo added.
"Production was like, 'Alright, we're starting to run out of vases. If we don't get as soon, we're gonna have to use real ones," Jacob said about a section where he hits someone in the head with a vase. "Tony was like, 'Sure, we got it! We're gonna get it on the next one! It's gonna be great!'"
For Mary Mouser, the scene was a little bit different this year due to Samantha's storyline, but it was so worth it to see Sam and Tory's big showdown.
"It was a little heavier. The mental process of going into that was more than normal. But, one of my favorite shots of the season is coming into the home dojo and the moment when I turn in slo-mo and then Peyton [List] is coming in. They had a fan on her, so her hair is like blowing back in slow motion. She's coming in like she's Darth Vader's. You're like, 'Oh sh*t, like what are they going to do?'"
The scene also allowed the two actresses to shake things up thanks to some brand new props not really seen yet.
"The moment where she grabs the nunchucks, just drops it down and I'm getting ready to pick up the bō staff, that whole sequence it just like felt like the culmination of the whole story of the season. Especially after having that moment with the Mr. Miyagi photo," Mary told Seventeen. "Tory, the big bad villain in Samantha's world, is finally real. She's there and she's no longer the hologram in my brain that's torturing me at night, but rather an actual human. It's all about standing up for yourself."
Payton and Mary also had a great time seeing it back, especially thanks to some incredible moments that is sure to cause some laughs in this very serious scene.
"The Christmas music and all of that just cracks me up what these guys do," Mary said. "My favorite part is Bert [Owen Morgan] and Nate [Nathaniel Oh] getting thrown into the into the Christmas Tree. Oh, it's so good!"
"They do a really good job with the comedy-drama balance. I love that because I do think life is full of comedy even in the most dark moments," Payton added. "There's just things that happen that you go, "What in the hell? What is this?" Even things like Eagle Fang and everything else in this series is just fun!"
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