In the summer of 1985,
Mr. Miyagi tells then-adolescent
Daniel LaRusso about the origins of Miyagi family karate and the relationship between the Miyagi and Han families. Mr. Miyagi's 17th-century ancestor, Shimpo Miyagi, ended up in China while fishing off the coast of Japan. The Han family took him in and taught him kung fu, which he used to develop Miyagi family karate upon his return to
Okinawa. In the present day of 2024, Mr. Han is the revered
shifu, master of a
wuguan, kung fu school in Beijing. Among his students is his great-nephew, Li Fong. Li's mother is a doctor, who arrives to tell Li and Mr. Han that she has accepted a job in New York City and makes Li promise to stop practicing martial arts when Li's brother, Bo, was stabbed to death by a vengeful defeated opponent after a tournament a year prior. In New York, Li struggles to adjust at school, socially and meets Mia Lipani, the daughter of former local boxing champion, Victor Lipani, who now owns a pizza shop. As their friendship begins to grow, they are confronted by Mia's aggressive ex-boyfriend and a local karate champion, Conor Day. After Conor punches Li in the face, his mother hires a tutor, Alan, who becomes his best friend. Li later confronts Conor again at school, but he realizes that Conor is a more powerful fighter. Li tries a jumping, spinning kick called a "dragon kick", learned from Bo, but Conor counters and defeats him. One night, Li witnesses Victor being attacked by thugs sent by his creditor, O'Shea, who owns the karate dojo where Conor trains. Forced to intervene, Li defeats the attackers. Victor decides to return to boxing to pay off his debt and save his pizzeria and asks Li to train him. Li is hesitant, but he says yes after discussing it with Mr. Han over the phone and later becomes Victor's employee in the pizzeria. During Victor's comeback match, the opponent, following orders from O'Shea, knocks him out with illegal hits, sending Victor to the hospital. Li, who is paralyzed by memories of Bo's death, fails to step in to help at the hospital, earning Mia's disappointment. Li's mother, who works at the hospital, also expresses her disappointment in Li's continued involvement in martial arts. Mr. Han arrives in New York to confront Li, who has avoided several of his phone calls. Upon learning the truth, Mr. Han encourages Li to return to martial arts to enter the upcoming Five Boroughs Tournament, both to help his friends and to confront his past. Han visits Los Angeles to ask Daniel for help. Despite initially refusing, Daniel joins them in New York. Meanwhile, Victor fully recovers from his injuries, and Mia and Li mend their relationship which has budded into a romance. Li trains in both kung fu from Mr. Han and Miyagi-Do karate from Daniel. Alan lends Li his rooftop garden as his makeshift training ground. Mr. Han and Daniel develop a new variation of the dragon kick to lure the opponent into a counterattack, which Li can then dodge and reverse-counterattack. Li begins fighting in the Five Boroughs Tournament and makes his way to the finals against Conor. O'Shea sends thugs to attack Li, but Mr. Han and Daniel defend him. Mr. Han also convinces Li's mother that martial arts are beneficial for Li, as they help him overcome his tragic past. Li and Conor face off in an intense eight-point match. Conor initially dominates the match, but through his resilience and with both Shifu Han and Sensei LaRusso in his corner, Li eventually turns the tide of the match and manages to tie with Conor. In the final round that determines the victor, Li executes his adapted dragon kick maneuver, winning the match and overcoming his fears. Conor retaliates with a sneak attack, but Li swiftly defeats him and shows him mercy, earning Conor's respect. Later, Victor opens a second pizzeria location and Mr. Han returns to China. In Los Angeles, Daniel receives a frozen pizza delivery from Li with a note and picture inside as a thank-you gift, where he and
Johnny Lawrence debate whether New York pizza is better than California pizza. Johnny pitches a new business idea; a dojo-themed pizzeria called Miyagi-Dough, much to Daniel's embarrassment. ==Cast==