Cobra Kai actor Martin Kove last year faced a sexually harassment probe from Sony for his conduct on his set of The Karate Kid adaptation after a female extra said he made her uncomfortable with his behavior.
‘It wasn’t true then, and it isn’t true now,’ the Brooklyn, New York City-born actor, 78, told Deadline on Thursday of the sexually harassment complaints made against him more than a year ago.
Sources told the outlet that the extra complained Kove had been ‘leering’ and ‘verbally overt’ toward a female extra on the Atlanta set of the adapted film franchise.
The woman subsequently complained to producers he was making her feel uncomfortable, and Sony launched a probe into the incident.
Reports of the Sony investigation into the actor come after Kove admittedly bit costar Alicia Hannah-Kim at a fan event earlier this month in Puyallup, Washington, claiming he was immersed in their respective roles on the series.
Daily Mail has reached out to Kove’s reps for further details on the incident.
Cobra Kai actor Martin Kove, 78, last year faced a sexually harassment probe from Sony for his conduct on his set of The Karate Kid adaptation after a female extra said he made her uncomfortable with his behavior. Pictured last year in LA
The Hollywood veteran of more than 50 years posted a message to more than 1.4 million followers on his Instagram account earlier this month
Kove – who portrayed the role of villainous karate instructor John Kreese in the first three Karate Kid film in the 1980s – told the outlet that he didn’t do anything wrong.
Kove, who has reprised his role of Kreese on 57 episodes of Cobra Kai since 2018, said that he was honest when questioned about his behavior by Sony officials looking into the 2024 claim.
‘If there was something to confess, I would be the first to say it,’ Kove said. ‘Sony did ask me about the alleged incident, and I was completely transparent.’
The veteran actor, who has been active in Tinseltown for more that five decades, said the timing of the news going public was suspect.
‘This is so bizarre,’ he said, ‘as it was in April of last year.’
According to the outlet, the initial complaint had enough merit to pursue further investigation.
