Cobra Kai's Oona O'Brien Has The Most Hilarious Description Of Her First Day On Set
"Cobra Kai" proves that even older franchises can spur on successful revivals, so long as the concept for the new series is novel, and the quality of the writing is high. Much like underdog Daniel LaRusso (Ralph Macchio), it now seems that the "Karate Kid" franchise will never be down for the count ever again, particularly since "Cobra Kai" keeps growing in popularity (via The Hollywood Reporter). And while the biggest focus of the series has naturally been on the "Karate Kid" veterans of Daniel and his rival Johnny Lawrence (William Zabka) as they get back into the martial arts game — each training students in their own unique ways — much of the popular storylines in "Cobra Kai" surround the many new, younger students themselves, as new ones keep being introduced to keep things fresh.
One of the newer students is Devon Lee (Oona O'Brien), a hot-tempered and impulsive fighter who doesn't take attitude from anyone. O'Brien, who plays the character, had a pretty amusing anecdote about her first day on the set of "Cobra Kai."
How Oona O'Brien spent her first day
Oona O'Brien was new to acting when she joined the cast of "Cobra Kai." Still, that didn't stop the young actor from getting into the thick of things on her first day of filming.
"My first day on the set of Cobra Kai was my first day on any set, actually — and I spent that entire day kicking all the guys in the balls," O'Brien told Netflix.
Indeed, when O'Brien's character, Devon Lee, joins Johnny's Eagle Fang Dojo, he lets her break herself in by taking groin shots on her many male counterparts in a scene that can be a bit painful to watch, for obvious reasons. Either way, O'Brien was clearly up to the task, and her character seems to be having a blast by the end of the scene. Furthermore, O'Brien's castmates have been consistently impressed with her work on "Cobra Kai." For instance, Dallas Dupree Young, who plays Kenny Payne in the series, had particularly high praise for her martial arts prowess. "I want to be Oona when I grow up," Young quipped about O'Brien's slick combat moves.
Of course, O'Brien's full perspective on the role is much deeper. "I think for Devon especially, having that Asian representation on this show is super important. Devon is a fierce competitor and she really challenges that [stereotypical] notion of Asian girls being weak and submissive."
With Season 6 of "Cobra Kai" being pretty much a sure thing, fans can no doubt look forward to at least one more season of O'Brien kicking butt and taking names as Devon Lee.