Actor Martin Kove, known for playing the menacing sensei John Kreese in The Karate Kid (1984) and Cobra Kai series, has been accused by co-star Alicia Hannah-Kim of assaulting her during a public event.
According to police reports obtained by Deadline, the 78-year-old actor was removed from Summer Con, held in Puyallup, Washington, after allegedly biting Hannah-Kim on the arm during a meet-and-greet on Sunday, June 22. Hannah-Kim, 37, who joined the cast in Season 5 as the fierce Kim Da-Eun, claimed Kove bit her so hard it came “almost to drawing blood”.
The actor told local law enforcement that the incident occurred without provocation. As she passed by a meet-and-greet table, Kove allegedly grabbed her arm and bit it, later attempting to kiss the same spot even after she cried out in pain. “He grabbed my arm again to kiss it…I pulled my arm away and rushed back to my table,” she said in her statement to police.
The situation escalated quickly. Officer Eric Barry, who responded to the scene, noted that the bite left “a very noticeable bite mark on her arm that was already turning blue and bruising.” Barry also reported: “I informed everyone that they were being audio and video recorded and that I was investigating an assault.” In the same report, Barry added that “Martin Kove admitted to biting Alicia’s arm and said he did it out of jest and he thought he was being funny, and they play fight all the time on the set of Cobra Kai, and he did not think it was a big deal.”
Although police documented the incident, no charges were filed. Hannah-Kim requested that only an informational report be taken, including statements from her and her husband, actor Sebastian Roché. After apologising to the couple, Kove was asked to leave the event. “It was all handled pretty quickly on site, and was over before you knew it,” a source with knowledge of the convention told Deadline, adding that news of the altercation spread rapidly among attendees.
Kove, a key figure in the Karate Kid franchise, has been a regular presence in all six seasons of Cobra Kai, alongside Ralph Macchio and William Zabka. As of now, neither party has commented publicly beyond the police statements.
