This article is about the fictional character. For the college coach, see John Kresse.
Fictional character
John Kreese
The Karate Kid character
Martin Kove as John Kreese in The Karate Kid Part III (left) and Cobra Kai (right).
First appearance
The Karate Kid (1984)
Created by
Robert Mark Kamen
Portrayed by
Martin Kove[1]
Barrett Carnahan (young, Cobra Kai)
Voiced by
Brent Mukai
In-universe information
Title
Captain
Sensei
Vietnam War veteran
Occupation
Karate instructor (sensei) (1975–1985; 2018–)
U.S. Army Special Forces Officer(1965-1975) (retired)
Busboy (1964-1965) (formerly)
Affiliation
Cobra Kai Karate
Fighting style
Tang Soo Do[2]
Family
Unnamed mother (deceased)
Significant other
Betsy (1965–1968, deceased)
Nationality
American
Teacher
Captain Turner Kim Sun-Yung
Students
Johnny Lawrence (1979-1984)
Bobby Brown (1979-1984)
Tommy (1979-1984)
Jimmy (1979-1984)
Dutch (1979-1984)
Mike Barnes (1985)
Tory Nichols (2018-2019)
Hawk (2018)
John Kreese is a fictional character and the main antagonist of The Karate Kid media franchise, portrayed by Martin Kove.[3] He is introduced in The Karate Kid (1984) and returns in its sequels The Karate Kid Part II (1986) and The Karate Kid Part III (1989). 29 years later, Kove began to reprise the role in the sequel television series Cobra Kai (2018–present).[4] He is a Vietnam veteran and a deranged karate sensei who founded Cobra Kai alongside Terry Silver. He initially served as Johnny Lawrence's karate sensei, before going on to become his archenemy.
^"Cobra Kai: Kove Explains Why John Kreese Had To Join the Karate Kid Sequel". CBR. April 29, 2019. Retrieved May 11, 2019.
^"Cobra Kai: The Dojo's True Origin In Karate Kid Explained". ScreenRant. January 6, 2021.
^"Behind the scenes of the original Karate Kid movie". SI.com. May 2018. Retrieved May 11, 2019.
^"Martin Kove Explains How John Kreese's Vietnam Backstory Led to 'Cobra Kai' [Interview]". /Film. April 22, 2019. Retrieved May 11, 2019.
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losing dojo being forced to disband. In order to combat the new threat, Kreese invites his old friend Terry Silver in order to take down Johnny and Daniel...
called Cobra Kai, practiced by the villainous Cobra Kai Dojo, founded by JohnKreese. In particular Johnny Lawrence, a central antagonist of the 1984 film...
which has left Miguel paralyzed, Robby a wanted criminal, Cobra Kai under Kreese's thumb and Miyagi-Do shut down. As the students of Cobra Kai grow increasingly...
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contributors were: Irving "Irv" Blitzer; Cool Runnings (played by John Candy) JohnKreese; The Karate Kid (played by Martin Kove) The veteran was: Frank...
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