Karate Kid Officially Introduces Its Johnny Lawrence Replacement Ahead Of The New Movie
The latest trailer for Karate Kid: Legends has revealed that the new movie will feature an antagonist roughly equivalent to Johnny Lawrence from the original 1984 film, The Karate Kid. In the franchise’s first movie, eponymous hero Daniel LaRusso is bullied by Johnny Lawrence, a black belt in karate, and his friends after talking to Johnny’s ex-girlfriend. It’s this bullying that inspires Daniel to take up karate, upon seeing his neighbor Mr. Miyagi defeat Johnny and the rest of his Cobra Kai gang in a fight. Karate Kid: Legends sets up a similar premise for its hero, Li Fong.
Li is a young boy forced to move with his mother to New York from their home in China. The story of his adaptation to new surroundings while learning karate mirrors the initial story of Daniel LaRusso, who moves from New Jersey to Los Angeles in the first Karate Kid movie. Meanwhile, Li’s introduction to his nemesis, Connor, is uncannily similar to the first time we meet Johnny Lawrence in The Karate Kid. The two stories aren’t identical, but from what we know about Karate Kid: Legends it’s clear that the movie will pay homage to its forerunner.
Connor Is Set To Be Karate Kid: Legends’ Version Of Johnny Lawrence
In the newest trailer for Karate Kid: Legends, Li Fong meets Connor on a subway train while he’s hanging out with Mia, his love interest, who apparently has some romantic connection to Connor, too. “Who’s your friend?” Connor demands of Mia, before we see him kicking Li to the floor in the school playground. This plot set-up is almost identical to the way Daniel LaRusso meets Johnny Lawrence in The Karate Kid. Just as Connor apparently has a rival for Mia’s affections in Connor, Daniel gets on the wrong side of Johnny by talking to his ex-girlfriend, Ali.
For the central characters in both movies, it’s violent karate attacks from their respective nemesis that inspire them to learn the martial art to defend themselves. Like Daniel, it also seems that Li is destined to fight his version of Johnny Lawrence, Connor, at a karate tournament in the city he now calls home. Naturally, then, in Karate Kid: Legends Li needs Daniel LaRusso himself to come to New York and pass on the techniques he learned from Mr. Miyagi to defeat Johnny in the original Karate Kid.
Karate Kid: Legends’ Villain Might Not Be Exactly The Same As Johnny Lawrence
At the same time, Connor in Karate Kid: Legends is unlikely to be exactly the same as Johnny Lawrence in The Karate Kid. For a start, the two characters look quite different, with Connor’s brown hair more reminiscent of Johnny’s sensei at his dojo, John Kreese, than Lawrence’s own shock of blonde hair. What’s more, from the trailer it appears that Connor is something of a lone wolf. He trains at a gym called Demolition Mixed Martial Arts, rather than at a traditional dojo as Johnny Lawrence does.
Famously, Johnny trains with Kreese at the Cobra Kai dojo, which is where he and his friends get the name of their gang from. They move around in a group, with Johnny’s friends always ready to back him up in a fight, which is what makes Mr. Miyagi’s takedown of the entire gang so spectacular. By contrast, Connor never appears to be backed up by any gang.
Li’s Karate Kid Story Is Already Mirroring Daniel’s In A Lot Of Ways
It’s not just Johnny Lawrence who’s being referenced in Karate Kid: Legends, either. Daniel LaRusso’s story of moving from his hometown to an alien city with his mother is directly mirrored in the story of Li Fong. Like LaRusso in The Karate Kid, it’s Li’s new surroundings and a fight over a girl that encourage him to take up karate. Whereas LaRusso learns the martial art from Mr. Miyagi, Li has the guidance of LaRusso himself, alongside Jackie Chan’s character Mr. Han.
On the other hand, Li Fong has a significant advantage over Daniel LaRusso when it comes to learning karate. Li is already a skilled exponent of kung fu, which makes it easier for him to master the basics of karate, as LaRusso tells him during the trailer. Nevertheless, Li still has a battle on his hands to emulate his sensei by defeating Connor and winning the karate tournament which will surely mark the climax of Karate Kid: Legends. LaRusso may have to channel visions of Johnny Lawrence into the training of his young apprentice to prepare him for the challenge.
