Trivia / The Karate Kid Part II

• Actor-Shared Background:
  • Tamlyn Tomita, like Kumiko, was born in Okinawa.
  • Danny Kamekona was from Hawaii, where the movie was filmed.
• California Doubling: Although set in Okinawa, the film was actually shot in Oahu, Hawaii. The island was chosen because of its similar climate to Japan, its large Okinawan population and the convenience of shooting on US soil... and because military bases like the one built right next to Tomi Village had drastically changed the local countryside of then-contemporary Okinawa.
• Dawson Casting: Chozen is implied to be around the same age as Daniel. Yuji Okumoto is actually older than the already teenage looking Ralph Macchio. In fact, Okumoto is the oldest actor to play Daniel's rivals (both William Zabka and Sean Kanan are younger than Macchio). This makes him older than Thomas Ian Griffith as well, who plays a man at least decades older than both in the sequel and Cobra Kai.
• Disowned Adaptation: Ralph Macchio revealed in a later interview that Elisabeth Shue wasn't pleased with the film making Ali cheat on Daniel just to write her character off. Cobra Kai remedied this by stating Daniel overreacted to a misunderstanding involving Ali and a male friend, which she then egged on because she was upset with Daniel.
• On-Set Injury: Danny Kamekona actually injured his throat from all the yelling he had to do as Sato.
• Pop-Culture Urban Legends: A popular rumor is that the opening scene was the original filmed ending for the first film and it was cut for pacing reasons. The truth is it was only scripted for the first one and wasn't shot until production for this film. The fuel to this fire was possibly added by the fact that the 2010 remake actually did film a similar scene of Mr. Han confronting the rival Kung Fu school's master, but that ended up in the cutting room floor, like the rumours for the original movie says.
• Refitted for Sequel: The opening scene was originally meant to be the ending of the first film. Contrary to popular belief, it was scripted for the first film, but was actually shot for this one.
• Throw It In!: The song playing in the country club Daniel crashes in the first movie is heard again on the radio in the cab ride from the Okinawa airport. Neither occurrence is a plot point.
• What Could Have Been:
  • Some scenes cut from the original script include a scene introducing a mysterious character named Webster Miyagi who waits for Miyagi outside the tournament building, to whom Miyagi reacts in an uncomfortable manner, and also a scene of Daniel and Ali breaking up because of Ali leaving for Europe for the summer.
  • One of the early ideas for the film revolved around Kreese trying to get revenge against Daniel and Miyagi for defeating and humiliating him in the first film, but the idea was shelved in favor of a story that would allow Miyagi's backstory to be expanded upon. The plot involving Kreese's revenge would later be used for The Karate Kid Part III.