The Next Karate Kid Star Hilary Swank Speaks Out on Cobra Kai Return

The fifth season of Cobra Kai is now streaming on Netflix and the series has seen the return of some pivotal characters from the . Of course, the show stars franchise staples Ralph Macchio (Daniel LaRusso) and William Zabka (Johnny Lawrence), but there is another big name from the films that people want to see return. Oscar-winner Hilary Swank starred as Julie Pierce in The Next Karate Kid in 1994, and she was recently tight-lipped when asked about appearing on Cobra Kai in the future.

While promoting her new ABC series, Alaska Daily, during the show’s TCA presentation (via Deadline), Swank was asked about potentially making a Cobra Kai cameo. “I was told that I’m supposed to only keep it to Alaska Daily, so I guess that question is for another time,” Swank told Deadline with a laugh. While that certainly isn’t a promising reply, it does leave the door open for Julie Pierce to return. 

At the beginning of the year, the trio of Cobra Kai creators spoke with Fandom about the possibility of Swank’s return, and they were also cryptic in their answer.

“All we can say about her is we love Hilary Swank,” co-creator and executive producer Jon Hurwitz said. “We think she’s a phenomenal actress and we love her character in this franchise. She was taught by Mr. Miyagi and she’s somebody who is important to the Karate Kid universe. We can’t say if she’ll return, we can’t say how she’d return if she was going to return.”

“We can say that we talk about her and maybe we’ve met her, maybe we’ve worked with her, maybe we haven’t,” he continued. “We can’t tell you anything! It’s gonna continue to be a question until either she shows up or the series ends and we welcome the question every time!”

While it’s unclear what the future holds for Cobra Kai, Macchio did tell ComicBook.com they could continue the “Karate Kid Cinematic Universe.” 

“The thing that’s been created, there’s kind of this Karate Kid Cinematic Universe now where Cobra Kai is, you know, at the center of that and when that day does come in for a landing, there are other areas to draw from,” Macchio teased. “I mean, whether it’s … Is there a Miyagi origin story? Is there a Cobra Kai prequel before The Karate Kid? Is there spin-offs with some of the young cast of these characters? Who knows? But we’re not done as long as we’re given the opportunity to really bring it in. As long as it evolves organically, these guys that write the show really have their finger on the pulse of that.” 

Would you like to see Hilary Swank make an appearance on Cobra Kai? Let us know in the comments!

Cobra Kai Season 5 is now streaming on Netflix.