Following the events of Cobra Kai season 5’s closing arc, only a few potential characters can show up in season 6 as the show’s true final villains.
Cobra Kai season 5 resolves many overarching story arcs in its closing moments but also leaves enough room to reinstate old characters and introduce new ones as season 6’s final villains. Terry Silver reigns supreme in Cobra Kai season 5’s first half as he spreads his dojo business all across the Valley. Daniel LaRusso does everything to stop him, but to his dismay, all his plans backfire on him. Towards the end of Cobra Kai season 5, Daniel, Johnny, and their students finally overpower Silver by exposing his fraudulent methods to his students and tainting his image in the karate world.
Where one antagonist’s story ends, another begins when John Kreese outsmarts law enforcers and escapes prison. Flashbacks to Kreese’s time in Korea also suggest that Kim Da-Eun could be a potential threat in Cobra Kai season 6. However, given how season 6 marks the end of Cobra Kai’s epic run, it is hard not to wonder which one of the potential villains will actually be the final boss in the closing season. Therefore, here’s a breakdown of all the Cobra Kai characters who could take over as season 6’s primary villains.
7. Terry Silver
Terry Silver breaks his students’ trust towards Cobra Kai season 5’s ending and even gets arrested by authorities after Stingray confesses that he was the one who beat him up. However, this does not mean that his Cobra Kai arc has ended. If anything, it probably suggests that he will come out guns-a-blazing in Cobra Kai season 6 and show no mercy towards those who tried to take him down. Considering how he can easily afford an excellent group of lawyers and has close contacts in the higher echelons of the Valley, he will likely overturn all the criminal charges against him.
Since his students lost their respect for him and his fraudulent ways of winning tournaments got exposed in Cobra Kai season 5’s final moments, his biggest season 6 challenge will be to earn the trust and respect of all the people he let down. If he changes his ways and takes the moral route to win everyone’s trust, he could have a redemptive arc. On the other hand, if he doubles down on his sinister plans of expanding Cobra Kai’s legacy using morally questionable methods, he could gradually rise in ranks again to become Cobra Kai season 6’s big bad.
6. John Kreese
After Terry Silver double-crossed him, John Kreese started showing some potential for redemption. Even his fake death towards the end of Cobra Kai season 5 seemed like a natural redemptive end of his journey. However, he reinstated himself as one of the biggest threats in the show when he flipped his script by escaping prison and seemingly setting out on a journey to seek revenge from everyone who wronged him. While he could stay underground for the rest of his Cobra Kai arc and live in peace instead of looking for vengeance, he does not seem like the kind of man who would shy away from treading the warpath.
5. Kim Da-Eun
In season 5, Kim Da-Eun was as ruthless as Silver when she trained Cobra Kai’s students as their new Sensei. Although Cobra Kai has not yet explored her backstory and has only hinted at her ties with John Kreese, the show could delve deeper into her past in the final season and make her the primary villain by exploring how her motives extend beyond sustaining her family’s forgotten karate legacy. Achieving this in one season could prove challenging since Cobra Kai season 5 largely portrayed her as a one-dimensional secondary antagonist. However, her childhood ties with Kreese suggests that she could be a worthy final boss when teamed up with the army veteran.
4. Colonel Paul Dugan
Most discussions and theories surrounding the return of The Next Karate Kid’s characters revolve around Hilary Swank’s Julie Pierce. However, there is another character from the movie whose return could create shock waves in Cobra Kai’s world. The movie’s primary villain, Colonel Paul Dugan, would not only be a compelling villain for season 6 but may also have a strong reason to show up at the Sekai Taikai after his humiliating The Next Karate Kid loss against Mr. Miyagi. Not to mention, if Julie Pierce appears as a mentor for Miyagi Do’s students in season 6, Dugan will have an even better reason to compete against her in the Sekai Taikai.
Dugan’s timeline in the Karate Kid series suggests that he might have crossed paths with John Kreese and Terry Silver during the Vietnam War. If that holds true, either of them could reach out to him and seek his help in taking down and forever destroying Mr. Miy agi’s legacy. Introducing a whole new character like Colonel Dugan in the final season could potentially dilute the resolution of existing villain arcs. However, Cobra Kai season 6 could still team him up with Terry Silver or Kreese and make an exciting antagonist out of him.
3. Hector Salazar
Miguel’s biological father, Hector, gets a brief arc in Cobra Kai season 5, which only seems to serve as a narrative catalyst to develop Miguel, Robby, and Johnny’s relationship. However, since the season establishes Hector as a dangerous criminal, his return in Cobra Kai season 6 could spell some serious trouble for Miguel and Johnny. If he figures out that Carmen lied to him and intentionally kept his son away from him for so long, he may use his contacts in the criminal world to wage a war against the people from his past. Since he also has MMA connections, he could show up with his own team of fighters in Cobra Kai season 6’s Sekai Taikai to show Johnny who’s the boss.
2. A Villain Team-Up Including Silver, Hector, And Kim
As Cobra Kai’s last season, season 6 is responsible for winding up all underlying story arcs before its ending. Therefore, it would make sense for the season to feature a villain team-up instead of focusing on the individual arcs of many different villains. Since Silver became John Kreese’s nemesis after he betrayed him in Cobra Kai season 4, there is no way the two could suddenly bury their beef and join forces. Owing to this, a collaborative effort between Silver, Hector, and Kim would be narratively consistent with the show’s overarching storyline and would also effectively raise the stakes for Johnny and Daniel since they will have to face multiple threats at once.
1. Cobra Kai Season 6 Could Introduce A New Villain
Because of its time constraints, it seems less likely that Cobra Kai season 6 will risk introducing a new villain in its final arc. However, given how the show’s creators have consistently surprised audiences with their creative choices, they will probably find a way to keep new potential villains interesting and menacing enough to be worthy opponents for Daniel and Johnny. This could again leave audiences unsatisfied if it chips away at the development of Cobra Kai’s long-running characters. However, if Cobra Kai season 6 somehow effectively ties the new villains’ narrative into existing character arcs, it could get away with the unusual change in direction.
