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Yuji Okumoto

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Actor

The Resume

    (April 20, 1959- )
    Born in Los Angeles, California
    Based in Seattle, Washington
    Chozen Toguchi in Karate Kid 2 (and on third season onward of Cobra Kai)
    Also appeared in ‘Real Genius,’ ‘Better Off Dead,’ ‘True Believer (1989),’ ‘Robot Wars,’ ‘Blue Tiger,’ ‘The Truman Show,’ ‘Pearl Harbor,’ ‘The Crow: Wicked Prayer,’ ‘Big Momma’s House 2,’ ‘Only the Brave,’ and ‘Inception’
    Guest appearances include Young and the Restless, T.J. Hooker, Lois & Clark, Murder She Wrote, JAG, Bones, and The Mentalist
    Third-generation American of Japanese lineage (or sansei)
    Co-owner of Kona Kitchen / Yuji’s Bar & Lounge

Why he might be annoying:

    He didn’t enter martial arts training until his early teens.
    While shooting Karate Kid 2 (at 27!), he was at a general brown belt level.
    At that point, he had felt pigeonholed into stereotypical roles and really just wanted to play an all-American guy.
    He initially believed that white, brown, and black were the only true martial arts belt colors.
    In sharp contrast to Chozen’s flashiness, he considered himself to be painfully conservative.

Why he might not be annoying:

    On the other hand, he would achieve a basic grounding in numerous other forms of martial arts.
    He was a graduate of California State University @ Fullerton — where the All-Valley Tournament in the first ‘Karate Kid’ movie was filmed.
    Because he lacked a definitive accent, he was able to portray other Asian ethnicities as seamlessly as Pat Morita could.
    In the years following that film, he would develop such a deep backstory and biography for Chozen that it would become official for the new series!
    He had a small role in ‘The Paper Tigers,’ a 2020 independent film which he produced.

Credit: Cool It All Right?


Featured in the following Annoying Collections:

Year In Review:

    In 2023, Out of 5 Votes: 20.0% Annoying