Karate Kid Remake Plot Details Revealed

karate kid jaden

Moviehole has learned some new details about the Will Smith-produced reimagining of The Karate Kid. The film’s plot is broadly the same as the original 1984 film, but with many little differences. The Daniel Larusso character, played by Jaden Smith, has been renamed Dre (I kid you not) and is a skateboarding video game buff. With the fear of layoffs looming over her U.S. job, Dre’s single mother accepts an offer to transfer to the China office. Of course, unable to speak Chinese, Dre finds it hard to settle in, and gets beat up by the local bully.

The Mr. Myiagi character has been renamed Mr. Han, played by Jackie Chan, spots a black-eyed Dre practicing martial-arts kicks as part of a Wii-style video game and agrees to teach him both martial arts and Chinese. The John Kreese’ character has been renamed Li Quan Ha, and is now the owner of the Fighting dragon school of Kung-Fu. Clint has heard that the Chris Murphy-penned remake is actually a good script, but I’m somewhat doubtful.

I’m shocked to learn that the film is still going under the title “The Karate Kid“, and not “The Kung-Fu Kid” title that was rumored a couple months back. The film’s title doesn’t make a lick of sense, especially since the new film involves a kid who learns Kung Fu, and not karate. And why would Sony want to satisfy the many fans of the original film by changing just one word in the film’s title?

  • FAIL!
  • Ditto. Epic fail.
  • Brian
    OK. im not a huge fan of the karate kid series.. but this is going to suck balls big time. all those name changes and shiz? its retarded.. its like remaking f13 again, but changing jasons name to geroge!

    it just doesnt work.

    why cant people leave clasics alone and go remake the crapy movies that could have been good but failed miserably!?
  • that's weird.

    China..Kung Fu...but it's called The Karate Kid? I thought they were going to change the title!

    Imagine if they made a movie about Purto Rico and called it "Mexico".
  • exactly. god, I can't stand Hollywood.
  • In Hollywood, Karate, Kung Fu, Judo, and whatever Eastern martial arts, are all dubbed under "Asian".

    I'm sure there are grown adults in the world who think anyone who looks remotely Asian must be Chinese... and until otherwise, Hollywood has a lot of those people.
  • candace
    you are stupid
  • Stevo
    So thats how hollywood works. Your daddy is making a film and because of that you get the starring role. Disgusting Mr. Smith...
  • Justin Craig
    It took you this long to figure that out?
  • candace
    I figured this is a stupid movie
  • Rob
    What's wrong with Dre? Heaps of people are named Dre.
  • candace
    alot of people will not watch this stupid movie
  • filmkid
    first of whats wrong with the name Dre its short for Andre no big deal also they need to change the name of the movie The Kung-Fu Kid if they dont their is going to be a backlash.
  • But will anyone say "Sweep the leg!" and "Put him in a body bag johnny!"[youtube uFlQNtL8F9s http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=uFlQNtL8F9s youtube]
  • This is gonna fucking fail. It's raping of the classic.
  • As part of a large corporation, when executives have to move to a foreign country, their kids are usually sent to a private school where other kids from the company go to that speak English.
  • Justin Craig
    Don't bring logic into this! The next thing you're probably going to tell me is that it's ridiculous to make a movie about a Japanese martial art and set it in China. You logical bastard! Hollywood has no place for your kind!
  • Lucas
    which would be logical if she was actually an exec. but apparently she is not or she wouldn't be so worried about getting laid off cause she'd have a severance package etc.

    and folks remember that the target audience for this movie is young boys that are sick of seeing and hearing about those stupid twilight movies. they know little to nothing about the original movies and the whole 'Dre, skateboarding, video games is something they can relate to a lot more than beach parties, old cars and water parks.

    and though this movie won't win any Oscars it is likely to make box office as a feel good family friendly, boy friendly flick
  • candace
    you and the movie is stupid
  • Edvin
    You know for kids in the 80's Karate Kid was an awesome movie, but what is there to ruin if you look back at it it's cheesy hammy poorly writen sugar sprinkled.

    I can't imagine that the new movie will be any worse.
  • Mikey
    That picture is pretty funny, I must say.
  • /photo
    yeah I always get a kick out of it too
  • candace
    you and the movie is stupid
  • candace
    this is not funny it is awful
  • candace
    the family tree of man is stupid
  • Well I don't must see the movie in a cinema. A perfect movie for a rainy day, when it is out in the free-tv. Maybe there will be some changes before they do the movie.
  • How can you change Miyagi's Name!?!
  • candace
    how many times are you going to say that
    keep the name myagi
  • How can you change Myiagi's Name!?!
  • candace
    don't change the name
  • Peter- I know it;s the seocnd time we've seen that pic "We're going to ruin.." but it is funnier the seocnd time around my friend! LOL So true... words of wisdom.
  • hilariouspicture
    actually we've seen it four times including in today's post:

    http://www.slashfilm.com/2008/11/10/worst-idea-ev...

    http://www.slashfilm.com/2009/01/13/worst-idea-ev...

    http://www.slashfilm.com/2009/03/29/karate-kid-re...

    you know this movie's gonna be bad if it was featured in TWO "worst idea ever" posts
  • FunkyMunkey
    I just don't understand how this will work.

    He is Chinese... he will be teaching him Kung Fu. They will have to CALL IT Kung Fu in the movie, not Karate. But they are going to call the movie Karate Kid. I wouldn't be surprised if they add a bit of punctuation and call it "Karate Kid?!".

    Fucking knobbers
  • yep... EPIC FAIL. Everyone here is right, they could have simply renamed it THE KUNG FU KID and then they could make a rubbish claim that they want to "reboot" (cough remake cough) the franchise.
  • Brian
    This sounds atrocious. Please name this movie something else please. Does not deserve to be in the same sentence as karate kid. I am going to try to wait for judgement till it is released, but this story just is not sounding all that great.
  • bglooney
    This just in: Weinsteins rereleasing the Bible. 4 disc directors cut.
    Are there ANY NEW ideas in Hollywood!? Jesus tapadancing Christ.
    The Karate kid in China? Where he leans kung-fu, and indigenous martial art. Greatly different from Karate. And his name, .....is Dre.

    SOUNDS LIKE A HT!!! I really hope we get some $cientology indoctrination while he's at it.
  • candace
    you and this movie is stupid
    the comment below is for not foe
  • You guys make it sound like they are going back to the eighties to actually rape children.
    Being a movie fan I'll watch anything ( like kevin smith said in one of his life shows- not an exact quote but like jesus talked i look for the hidden meaning), just consider this version to be a swede or something if it makes it easier.
    I would have watched this is even if Will Smith was playing Miyagi. Nostalgia fogs the mind.
    Jaden is already a better actor then Ralph Maccio ever was and he's defintely gonna have a better career. ( my cousin Vinney was not Ralph's Travolta moment)
    And if this is about Will Smith helping the kid out... good for him. how many black actor kids can say that their daddy helped. this is a good thing. I miss the good old days when we used to all bitch about dakota fanning.

    but I do agree they shouldn't call it the karate kid if there's no karate.
    Maybe they can call the movie : "Will Smith's kid"
  • candace
    dakota fanning is 10 times a better actor than jayden smith
    you prejudice piece of trash
    I'm bitching saying cancel this movie
    we are thanking god no one is attacking dakota fanning
    we are praying foe every one to bitch about jayden
  • "SWEEP THE LEG, JOHNNY!!"
  • travoltaisadouche
    Jaden Smith is terrible.

    Scientology sucks.
  • So this movies really getting made!?
  • jerry
    no it will be awful
  • I'm sorry, but no. Excuse me while I go barf in the bathroom.
  • Obviously going to fail, it sounds like crap plus it has Jackie Chan in it and the title makes no sense.

    Can't wait for them to remake 3 Ninjas and turn it into a local gang of black kids in NY who shoot people.
  • Van Damme is a smart man. He turned down a role in this film. Probarbly the leader of the Cobra Kais.
  • Sick thrilla
    I hope this never gets made. I can't stand that kid and Will Smith movies usually suck.
  • INS
    PATHETIC!!!!!
  • Who cares this much about the original Karate Kid? Did literally every release in the 80's define your childhood? Remakes don't always suck ass. Snyder's Dawn of the Dead was awesome. Oh, and who cares if Will Smith wants to hire his son? Nepotism has existed for a long time and has benefited the industry as often or more often than it hurts.

    BTW, 99.8 percent of people don't know the difference between karate and kung-fu, and half of the people that do don't give a flying eff. This move will still make plenty of money.
  • 98%?

    I think the problem here is that I don't care if a Korean gets cast as a japanese dude in a movie.

    My problem is that the producers think the public will be stupid and mix up all of those races around. It's dangerous and completely ignorant. Good GOD it's 2009! It's like me film a World War II movie and have it take place in Spain and MAKE it clear that it takes in SPAIN instead of Normandy withint the picture.

    If you don't know what I'm trying to say, maybe you need to open your eyes up a bit (insert Asian joke here).

    And the Karate Kid was a great movie that had some Oscar noms for Pat Morita.
blog comments powered by Disqus