EVERYBODY WAS KUNG FU FIGHTIN'

When Dre and his mom move to faraway China, he runs into some bullies who are out to clean his clock with kung fu! It's now up to his sifu Mr. Han to help Dre learn martial arts, best the bullies, and find his place in his new home! We unlock the martial arts mysteries behind this new flick.

It Ain't Karate

First of all, don't be fooled with the title. With the movie taking place in China, there's hardly any karate in the movie. Instead, it's all kung fu...or, as it's more properly known, wushu. So why call the movie Karate Kid? Well, for one, it's a remake of a classic martial arts flick called The Karate Kid. This came out back in the '80s (your mom probably had a crush on the lead actor), and yeah, it had real karate. Since it's a remake, they decided to keep the title for this flick. For another, "karate kid" is the insult that the Chinese bullies use to tease Dre.

What is Wushu?

Wushu is what you call Chinese martial arts. Outside of China, it's more known under the name of kung fu. There are dozens upon dozens of different wushu styles. To keep track of ’em all in a simple, ready-to-understand grouping, Chinese martial arts are sometimes grouped as either Northern or Southern (that is, whether the martial art came from north or south of the Yangtze River). Northern styles concentrate more on kicks, while Southern styles are focused on punches...which is where the famous Chinese martial arts saying "Southern fists and Northern kicks" comes from.

Turning the "Karate Kid" into the Kung Fu Kid

To get battle-ready for his role as Dre, actor Jaden Smith had to go through INTENSE, Kung Fu Panda-worthy level training. His teacher? Wu Gang, part of Jackie Chan's stunt team. He made Jaden go through three months of training, then trained him all throughout the four months of filming—seven months in all! Plus, Jaden had another "teacher", of sorts. "I watched a lot of Jackie Chan movies and even copied some of his moves," Jaden says.

The result? "When I first met Jaden, he was just a kid," his trainer Wu says. "A few months later, he was at the same level as kids that have been training for five or six years."

WHOA.

Karate Kid opens on June 11. Interviews courtesy of Columbia Pictures