Moon Taylor is unique in a show that is almost entirely about people hitting each other because she never does. She navigates the chaos of six seasons of tournament rivalries, dojo wars, and school fights like someone who never fully understood that everyone around her had taken a side. That might have always been the intention. It’s also one of Cobra Kai’s more subtly astute decisions throughout its existence.
Hannah Kepple, who was born in Asheville, North Carolina, on November 20, 2000, plays Moon. She is five feet three inches tall, studied ballet as a child, and has worked in film and television since she was in her teens. Her most well-known role prior to Cobra Kai was in the Investigation Discovery true crime documentary series Your Worst Nightmare, where she portrayed Kristy Ray, a young woman kidnaped in a reenactment of a real-life case. Although it stands in stark contrast to Moon’s upbeat, chakra-clearing energy on Cobra Kai, it implies Kepple has a greater range than the show ever really needed to utilize.
Moon joins Samantha LaRusso’s social circle at the start of the show. She is a cheerleader with Yasmine, a sharp-tongued best friend, and an easygoing confidence that lies just outside of the drama. In Season 1, she is not immune to cruelty; she takes part in a meme that makes fun of Aisha’s appearance, which is a detail that is easy to overlook considering how friendly she later becomes. However, the turn occurs naturally enough. At a lake party, she meets Eli Moskowitz. She is more attracted to his energy than his mohawk, and the two begin dating. Moon puts an end to Eli’s Cobra Kai aggression when it starts to bully his own friends. She tells him bluntly, “I’m not dating a bully.” No need for a monolog.
| Detail | Information |
|---|---|
| Character Name | Moon Taylor |
| Portrayed By | Hannah Kepple |
| Actress Date of Birth | November 20, 2000 |
| Actress Birthplace | Asheville, North Carolina, USA |
| Actress Height | 5’3″ (1.60 m) |
| First Appearance | Season 1, Episode 1 – “Ace Degenerate” |
| Last Appearance | Season 6 – “Strike Last” |
| Total Episodes | 24 episodes across all seasons |
| Role in the Show | Supporting character; best friend of Sam LaRusso and Yasmine |
| Character’s School | West Valley High School (Graduated) |
| Notable Character Trait | First pacifist and first LGBTQ+ character in the Cobra Kai series |
| Sexual Identity | Bisexual |
| Romantic Interests | Eli “Hawk” Moskowitz (boyfriend); Piper Elswith (ex-girlfriend) |
| Character’s Mother | Winnie Taylor, played by Elizabeth Berkley (Season 6) |
| Character’s Personality | Hippie, new age, sex-positive feminist; peace-seeking and kind |
| Off-Screen Relationship | Hannah Kepple dated co-star Xolo Maridueña (Miguel) after Season 1; broke up in 2022 |
| Notable Role Before Cobra Kai | Kristy Ray in Your Worst Nightmare (Investigation Discovery, true crime documentary) |
| Other Acting Credits | Tell Me Your Secrets (2021), Just Beyond (2021), The Legend of Juan Jose Mundo (2025) |
| Childhood Activity | Ballet classes |
| Real Name Nickname | Hannah Elizabeth |
| Fun Fact | Moon is the show’s consistent voice for peace — she never trains or fights in karate across the entire series |
One of the show’s more intriguing little details is what occurs next. Eli flirts with a girl named Piper at her own house party in an attempt to make Moon envious. It doesn’t take him long to figure out that Piper is Moon’s new girlfriend. The storyline of making Moon the first LGBTQ+ character in the series didn’t receive much screen time, but it was handled with a lightheartedness appropriate to the character—no announcement, no crisis, just Moon being Moon. The show handles her bisexuality with the same casual matter-of-factness that Moon applies to everything else.
Another off-screen detail is that, following the conclusion of Season 1, Hannah Kepple and Xolo Maridueña, who plays Miguel, dated in real life before splitting up in 2022. Knowing that the two actors were together behind the scenes while their characters were circling the same social world on screen is the kind of thing that makes you rewatch some scenes in a different way. It’s unclear if that improved their relationship in any way, but it’s a significant aspect of the show’s history that is rarely discussed.
Moon gives Cobra Kai a stable moral core unrelated to karate, which the show needed but didn’t always know how to ask for. All the other main characters are either fighting, training, or recuperating from one of the two. Moon plays guitar, plans peace demonstrations, throws parties with the express purpose of encouraging rival dojos to share a space, and appears genuinely troubled by the division that exists within West Valley High. She visions herself as “a drop of dew glistening in the moonlight” and takes her friends to a sensory deprivation center in Season 5. It falls in the middle of self-awareness and sincerity. Kepple does a good job of striking that balance, which is difficult to do without coming across as absurd.
Elizabeth Berkley, best known for her roles in Showgirls and Saved by the Bell, plays her mother in Season 6. Winnie Taylor’s portrayal as a wealthy, accepting woman who once gave her daughter marijuana as a birthday present fits in perfectly with Moon’s original design. The character’s warmth, her somewhat disorganized idealism, and her sincere concern for others all fit someone who grew up in that specific type of home. It’s a minor worldbuilding detail that subtly clarifies a lot.
By the end of the series, Moon and Eli have made up, she’s been to the Sekai Taikai finals, and she’s dating a Caltech student. It’s not a compelling storyline. However, witnessing a character genuinely choose peace in each and every episode is a statement in and of itself.
