Cobra Kai's Ralph Macchio and William Zabka Reflect on Becoming Friends as Adults: 'Miyagi Has Brought Us Together' (Exclusive)

Cobra Kai stars Ralph Macchio and William Zabka may feel like family now — but their relationship wasn't always like that.

After playing foes Daniel LaRusso and Johnny Lawrence, respectively, in the 1984 hit The Karate Kid, the two actors fell out of touch entirely, and they didn't reconnect until the funeral for their former costar, Pat Morita (who played Mr. Miyagi), in 2005.

"I lived on the East Coast, he lived on the West Coast, and life got in the way. We hadn’t spoken in probably 15, 20 years at the point that Pat passed away," Macchio, 62, tells PEOPLE in this week's issue. "I remember seeing Billy at the memorial service in Vegas, and I instantly had this emotional feeling. It was a comfort seeing him there. And from that point on, our adult friendship started to happen, and it was quite meaningful."

"Pat meant a lot to both of us individually, and Pat and I were dear friends," Zabka, 58, adds. "When he passed, it was super sad. Ron Thomas [who played Bobby in The Karate Kid] and I got on the phone and said, 'We have to go,' and we flew to Vegas."

Arriving and seeing Macchio was equally as "meaningful" for Zabka.

"I knew Ralph was going to speak, and I felt the weight for him on that because I knew it was a heavy moment," Zabka recalls. "I remember seeing him and it was a silent support I was giving him when he was up there talking, and I felt for him. He gave a beautiful speech."

In his memoir, Waxing On, Macchio further described that experience: "For the first time, after so many years of absence, I saw Billy from another perspective," he wrote. "It felt different. We were on the same side of the mat."

The fact that Morita, who played the soulful, peacekeeping karate coach and who was a source of inspiration to both Macchio and Zabka throughout their lives, was ultimately who led them to find such a powerful connection isn't lost on them.

"It's interesting in hindsight how Miyagi has brought us together," Zabka says. "It was just one of those moments where we both came from our worlds to a center point where it all started for both of us, and, in a way, that became an ignition for our friendship. It really just started to grow from there and evolve from there."

For more on Ralph Macchio and William Zabka, pick up the latest issue of PEOPLE, on newsstands Friday, or subscribe here.

Of course, that evolution has grown into the Karate Kid spinoff series, Cobra Kai, which launched in 2018 and its sixth and final season will premiere on Netflix on July 18. Mr. Miyagi's presence has been significant throughout the series, especially in the upcoming season, where Daniel will learn a few secrets about the man he thought he knew.

"We’ve always wanted to lace Miyagi through the show, and this is a way of uncovering the past of a man and layer in some intrigue about who he was," Macchio says. "It begins as this personal disappointment but it turns into something very positive for Daniel. It's another teaching moment; Miyagi's teaching him from the grave."

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Cobra Kai kicks off its final season with the first of three parts on July 18 on Netflix. Part 2 premieres Nov. 28 and the grand finale will drop in 2025.