This Karate Kid Remake Detail Opens The Door For A Surprising Mr. Han Twist In The 2025 Sequel

An interesting piece of lore from Jackie Chan's 2010 remake of The Karate Kid opens up a great possibility for when he reprises the role of Mr. Han in 2025's sequel. Although Chan's movie was once a recreation of the original movie from 1984, recent franchise developments have resulted in the 2010 effort being integrated into the main continuity. As a result, Mr. Han will be able to interact directly with Ralph Macchio's Daniel LaRusso in 2025's Karate Kid movie. In short, all five Karate Kid movies now share a universe, and the upcoming sequel will be movie six.

It's currently unclear to what extent the Cobra Kai season 6 cast will be involved in the upcoming sequel, with the spinoff show also drawing to an end in 2024. Story details about the new addition to the franchise are currently scarce, but Jackie Chan coming back as Mr. Han is one of the biggest and unexpected revelations. His role in the then-remake is very reminiscent of an iconic Karate Kid figure. However, by the time of the Karate Kid reboot's release date, Chan's character archetype will have transitioned significantly.

Mr. Han's Age In The Karate Kid Remake Makes Him More Like Daniel LaRusso Than Mr. Miyagi

Both movies being set so far apart means Mr. Han & Daniel share a surprisingly similar age

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In 2010's The Karate Kid, Jackie Chan's Mr. Han is Mr. Miyagi's remake counterpart. His overall backstory and personality aren't identical, but it's clear that Mr. Han is playing the same role in the movie as Pat Morita did in his. As such, it's easy to jump to the conclusion that, when Mr. Han returns, he will continue playing the part of the older, wiser man when he comes into contact with Daniel LaRusso. Interestingly, Chan is not that much older than Macchio in real life.

While Morita was also of a similar age when he debuted as Mr. Miyagi in 1984, his first movie was released and set around 25 years before Chan's.

Both actors are separated by less than 10 years. Therefore, Mr. Han is now more like Daniel than Mr. Miyagi. Chan was only in his mid-fifties when his Karate Kid movie was released. While Morita was also of a similar age when he debuted as Mr. Miyagi in 1984, his first movie was released and set around 25 years before Chan's. So, if Pat Morita hadn't passed away in 2005, he'd have been over 20 years older than Chan will be in the 2025 movie.

The new Karate Kid movie will arrive in theaters on May 30, 2025.

Because of this, it's conceivable that Mr. Han could have once been a student of Mr. Miyagi. Although Mr. Han has only been shown to have one student - Jaden Smith's Dre Parker - this still teases a similar arc to Daniel when it comes to becoming a teacher after learning from Pat Morita's late character. The fact that Mr. Han has transitioned into a teaching role, and is a similar age to Daniel, makes the two characters incredibly similar.

Putting Mr. Han In A Daniel-Esque Role Is Better Than Him Trying To Replace Mr. Miyagi

Chan's character is too young to replace Mr. Miyagi in the main Karate Kid universe

Mr. Miyagi passed away in the years between 1994's The Next Karate Kid and the first episode of Cobra Kai in 2018. The franchise respectfully chose not to replace Morita's character and instead allowed his legacy to permeate the spinoff show. If anything, Daniel became the spiritual successor to his former sensei when he started training students in the art of Miyagi-do Karate. Mr. Han could arguably be a great replacement for Mr. Miyagi in the upcoming movie, but it makes far more sense to have him in a role much more similar to that of Ralph Macchio's character.

The Karate Kid Franchise Release Timeline Movie/TV Show Year Rotten Tomatoes Score The Karate Kid 1984 90% The Karate Kid Part II 1986 47% The Karate Kid Part III 1989 15% The Next Karate Kid 1994 7% The Karate Kid 2010 66% Cobra Kai 2018-2025 92%

Having Mr. Han serve as a stand-in for Mr. Miyagi so long after the remake wouldn't make much sense with Daniel LaRusso also part of the story. Both men are of a similar level of experience and prowess, so trying to place one above the other in terms of seniority would be a little awkward - even if Macchio has long been the face of the franchise. Having them on an equal footing opens the door to a much more rewarding story than having Mr. Han play the role of Daniel's new sensei.

Mr. Han's Age Makes It More Of A Shame He Hasn't Shown Up In Cobra Kai

Chan would have been a great addition to the Karate Kid spinoff show (& technically still could be)

It's easy to see Mr. Han as an older man, given his parallels to Mr. Miyagi and how long it's been since his franchise debut. However, when considering how close in age Chan is to Macchio, Mr. Han's absence from Cobra Kai now feels like a huge waste of potential. Some great stories could have emerged between the two men, especially if it turns out that Mr. Han also has a connection to Pat Mortita's late character.

Related Jackie Chan's 2010 Karate Kid Remake Being In The Same Universe Isn't That Weird The Karate Kid franchise is set to retroactively make Jackie Chan's 2010 remake part of the main canon, and it can make perfect sense.

Of course, it's still possible that Mr. Han could return in Cobra Kai season 6. With part two of the spinoff's final season coming in November 2024 and the third and final part landing in 2025, there's still plenty of time for Chan's comeback. Specifically, he could tie into the Mr. Miyagi mystery. On the other hand, the Sekai Taikai is bound to be the main story of the last two batches of episodes. So, there just may not be enough time to bring back Jackie Chan's character before the 2025 Karate Kid movie.