'Cobra Kai' Pays Tribute to Assistant Director Jeff Kay in Season 5
Published Sept. 9 2022, 3:01 a.m. ET
(L-R) Jeff Kay and Logan Pepper
At last, we're finally back in the dojo.
On Sept. 9, the fifth season of Cobra Kai graced our screens with more shocking twists and chaotic drama than ever. The co-creators — Josh Heald, Jon Hurwitz, and Hayden Schlossberg — really know how to keep us on the edge of our seats.
Although there's much for fans to discuss and obsess over in Season 5, many viewers quickly shifted their attention from the Netflix dramedy's various storylines once a gracious dedication appeared at the end of Episode 3.
Following the last scene in the episode and before the credits began rolling, the screen presented a tribute: "In Memoriam, Jeff Kay: 1965-2021." Wait, who is Jeff? Here's what we know about him, including his role working on Cobra Kai.
'Cobra Kai' paid tribute to the late Jeff Kay.
In October 2021, news broke that well-known assistant director Jeff Kay passed away; he was 56 years old. According to his official IMDb page, Jeff died of a heart attack in Atlanta on Oct. 17.
If you're unaware, the highly-anticipated fifth season of Cobra Kai filmed in Atlanta from September 2021 to December 2021; therefore, we are saddened to report that Jeff likely died during production.
Jeff Kay worked on several iconic shows, including 'American Housewife.'
Throughout his career, Jeff worked as an assistant director and production manager for several television and film productions, including Courage Under Fire, Powder, Gettysburg, Numb3rs, and American Housewife.
Jeff served as the first assistant director on all five seasons of American Housewife and worked closely with the entire cast and crew, especially stars Diedrich Bader and Meg Donnelly.
"Our beloved Jeff Kay, who is speaking in this video — was the [first] AD & part of our beautiful American Housewife family… and has passed away suddenly," Meg shared on Twitter. "Our family is mourning this huge loss. His bright energy was so contagious and never ever failed to make us all laugh."
"My friend Jeff Kay, the longtime AD on American Housewife, died today," Diedrich tweeted on Oct. 17, 2021. "He was a beautiful, joyful, ebullient ray of light and brought nothing but joy to every second, and the world is a dimmer place without him & everyone who ever had the chance to know him is better off [because] of it."
Rest in peace, Jeff!
