“Cobra Kai” star Alicia Hannah-Kim has publicly spoken out about the incident in which her co-star Martin Kove bit her arm at this year’s Washington State Summer Con, telling her supporters, “No one wants to be attacked at work.”
Hannah-Kim filed a police report against the 78-year-old actor, accusing him of biting and bruising her arm. While the two were both at Summer Con, Hannah-Kim alleged that she approached Kove in a VIP area to greet him only for him to grab her arm after she tapped him on the shoulder and bite her so hard he nearly drew blood and cause her to yell out in pain. Afterward, Kove allegedly began kissing the area he had bitten.
The actress chose not to file charges against the actor, but he was subsequently expelled by police from the fan convention.
On Instagram, the actress addressed the incident for the first time in a video posted early Monday and thanked her fans for supporting her over the past week. “I know that there’s a lot going on in the world right now, so I am going to keep this brief,” Hannah-Kim said at the top of the video, in which a bruise is plainly visible on her arm. “I was really enjoying my time at Summer Con. I love meeting you guys in real life. Thank you to Taylor, who was my handler and took care of me all weekend. But as you can see, this was a serious incident.”
“No one wants to be attacked at work or anywhere, really. And I don’t think anybody would think this is normal or warranted or acceptable, and I just think that when you are confronted with something like this, it’s good to stand up for yourself. It’s an important choice to make. I think it’s the good choice to make,” she continued.
The actress, who joined “Cobra Kai” in its fifth season, added that she did not want her altercation with Kove to influence fans’ view of the beloved “Karate Kid” sequel series.
“I also want to express that this does not represent my experience with the show at large. I think everybody can tell that it’s a really good vibe and a great cast and everybody else is delightful,” she explained. “I don’t want this to affect your love of the show, and, you know, feel free to love on it as hard as you want. So, yeah, I just wanted to come on here, say thank you to everybody and, you know, just clear it up and move on. Everyone stay safe out there and, yeah, thank you guys.”
According to a police report obtained by TheWrap, Hannah-Kim left the VIP area where Kove bit her immediately after the incident to reconnect with her handler at the convention and her husband, Sebastian Roche, who confronted Kove. The latter reportedly “exploded” with anger and indignation when confronted about his behavior and initially insisted that he did not do anything wrong. When he was then approached by police, he admitted to biting his co-star and said he thought he was being funny.
Kove reprised his “Karate Kid” franchise role as the fearsome John Kreese in “Cobra Kai.” Hannah-Kim starred in the series, which premiered its final episodes in February, as Kim Da-Eun, a South Korean sensei who maintains a close relationship with Kove’s Kreese.
The Tuesday after Hannah-Kim’s police report was filed, Kove publicly apologized for his behavior toward the “Cobra Kai” actress. “I deeply regret and apologize for my actions regarding the incident with Alicia, a genuinely kind and wonderful person who didn’t deserve to be put in this position,” he said. “I’ve always respected her and considered her a highly professional and talented co-worker on ‘Cobra Kai.’”
“I was being playful in the moment but went too far and there is absolutely no excuse for my behavior,” Kove continued. “I regret my actions for which I take full responsibility for what I did, and again I apologize to her and her husband. I’m committed to learning from this and it will never happen again.”
