Cobra Kai actor reveals one of the show's best lines was "ripped straight from the dub" of My Hero Academia: "I was just like, I'm gonna be Bakugo"
Aug. 5, 2024Exclusive: Jacob Bertrand talks the influence anime has on Cobra Kai
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Cobra Kai star Jacob Bertrand’s love of anime has made its way directly into the series – and in an early, blink-and-you-might-miss-it moment.
“Bakugo from My Hero Academia. I don’t know if people might have caught it, but in Cobra Kai season 2 was when I was reading the manga for My Hero Academia and also, you know, watching the anime as it was coming out,” Bertrand tells GamesRadar+ when asked if there were anime characters the actor had based his character Eli ‘Hawk’ Moskowitz on. “And when we’re in the school fight, I’m searching for Demitri, I scream out at him. I’m like, Demitri, ‘I know you’re in here. You damn nerd.' That’s just ripped straight from the dub of My Hero. Especially how I even say ‘damn nerd.’ I just was like, I’m gonna be Bakugo. And I didn’t tell the writers and they were like, ‘this is perfect.’ I was like, ‘hell yeah, it’s perfect.'”
In Cobra Kai season 2 episode 10, a brawl breaks out in the hallway between Miyagi-do and Cobra Kai. Hawk, still at the peak of his villain arc, sets out to fight Demetri – who runs and hides while Hawk taunts him. ThroughoutMy Hero Academia, an anime series based on the beloved manga, Bakugo frequently refers to his enemy-turned-best-friend Izuku as “damn nerd” or “nerd.”
The series, which follows powerless Izuku as he makes his way through high school for superheroes-in-training, has a tournament arc known as the U.A Sports Festival. In the final season of Cobra Kai, the Sekai Taikai, the most prestigious karate tournament in modern martial arts history, is on the horizon. Bertrand says a tournament arc is something he’s been urging the writers to do for years.
“I’ve been telling the writers for year to do a tournament arc. Hunter Hunter has a tournament arc. Naruto has one. Jujutsu Kaizen has one. My Hero Academia has a tournament arc and I’ve been begging them to do a tournament arc. So, you know, Cobra Kai season 6 part 2, you just might see a tournament arc, who knows?”
Cobra Kai season 6 part 2 is set to hit Netflix on November 15. For more, check out our list of thebest Netflix showsto stream right now.
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Lauren Milici is a Senior Entertainment Writer for GamesRadar+ currently based in the Midwest. She previously reported on breaking news for The Independent’s Indy100 and created TV and film listicles for Ranker. Her work has been published in Fandom, Nerdist, Paste Magazine, Vulture, PopSugar, Fangoria, and more.
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