Li’s no pushover—he can already fight thanks to his time with Mr. Han—but Connor is a next-level problem. And then the story swerves hard away from Karate Kid tradition. Instead of linking up with Mr. Han or Daniel right away, Li starts vibing with Mia’s dad, Victor (Joshua Jackson), a down-on-his-luck ex-boxer who owns a pizza joint and owes money to a mobster-type named O’Shea. This dude? He’s like Kreese with a side hustle in organized crime and runs the dojo that trains Connor.
When Li helps Victor fight off some goons, Victor’s like, “Teach me your moves.” So for a good chunk of the film, we get this fun twist where the kid is training the adult. It’s cool. It’s fresh. But of course, things take a turn. Victor gets hurt in a comeback fight, and now Li has extra motivation—not just to stand up to Connor, but to win the $50K prize in the upcoming 5 Boroughs karate tournament and help Victor pay his debt.
Mr. Han shows up to guide him, but here’s the problem: the tournament is karate, not kung fu. So they take a trip to Los Angeles to recruit the one and only Daniel LaRusso, who’s still hanging around Miyagi’s house. Daniel’s reluctant at first (of course he is), but when Han explains the Miyagi-Han connection, he’s in. And just like that, Li has two masters: one for kung fu, one for karate. A perfect balance.
They train, Daniel gives Li a symbolic headband tied to the Miyagi-Han bond, and Li heads back to New York ready to throw down. In the final match, Li defeats Connor using a slick two-part kick—a move his late brother taught him, plus a twist suggested by Daniel. Classic Karate Kid moment.
And yeah, we get the victorious freeze-frame on Li’s win. But wait, there’s more. The movie doesn’t roll credits right away.
We get a sweet epilogue where Victor opens a second pizza joint, Han says goodbye before heading back to China, and Li sends Daniel a pizza delivery all the way from New York. When Daniel opens it, inside the box is a thank-you note from Li. But who answers the door with Daniel?
Johnny Lawrence.
Yup. William Zabka steps in for a surprise cameo, and the crowd (at least at my screening) lost it.
Johnny immediately roasts the pizza (because New York pie ain’t got nothing on Encino, apparently) and pitches a new business idea: a dojo/pizzeria called Miyagi-Dough. Daniel’s like, “Bro, that’s offensive,” and walks off while Johnny brainstorms slogans like, “Slice hard, slice fast.”
And that’s how the movie ends—fun, full-circle, and very much in the Karate Kid/Cobra Kai spirit. Legends is a bit all over the place, but it’s a love letter to the franchise, and if you grew up with Miyagi or Mr. Han, there’s a lot to enjoy here.
