A show based on a book is a common thing. But a show based on a YouTube original series? Sounds strange and unbelievable, right? Not for a Cobra Kai fan, though. Ever since Cobra Kai was released on Netflix, it has gained exponential fame and a fan base that remains unparalleled.
An extension of The Karate Kid movies, the temporal setting of the series takes place 34 years after the events of The Karate Kid, revolving around the rivalry between Johnny Lawrence and Daniel LaRusso. Its latest season, season five was released on Netflix in September 2022, and ever since, the creators of the show confirmed that show will be back for its sixth and final bang, fans have been perched on the edges of their seats, waiting for the “biggest and baddest” season of the show to drop on Netflix.
When was Cobra Kai officially renewed for a sixth season?
Normally, Netflix has renewed the upcoming seasons of Cobra Kai before the current seasons dropped on its platform. However, when it came to season 6, the wait seemed interminably long, until the moment arrived. The announcement was made on Twitter, where the showrunners expressed their gratitude to the fans and guaranteed a big final season in order to close all loose ends. The statement made on Twitter reads:
“When Daniel LaRusso arrived in the Valley with his mother in 1984, little did he know that his life was about to be forever changed. The same went for three young kids from New Jersey who hadn’t yet met one another. Daniel’s journey from bullied teen to underdog hero became an indelible part of our childhoods and something that we would always carry with us in our hearts.
Reacquainting the world with The Karate Kid universe has been our humble honor. Making Cobra Kai has allowed us to join the same hallowed dojo once inhabited by the great Robert Mark Kamen, John Avildsen, Jerry Weintraub, and all the amazing original cast members. It has also enabled us to play sensei, expanding the original storylines and birthing a new generation of underdogs. We’ve never once taken this opportunity for granted.
Our day-one goal with Cobra Kai has always been to end it on our terms, leaving the Valley in the time and place we’ve always imagined. So it is with immense pride and thankfulness that we are able to announce that achievement. The upcoming Season Six will mark the conclusion of Cobra Kai.
While this may be a bittersweet day for the fandom, the Miyagiverse has never been stronger. This fandom is the BEST on the planet and we hope to be telling more Karate Kid stories with you down the line. Because as we all know, Cobra Kai Never Dies.
In the meantime, strap in for the BIGGEST SEASON OF COBRA KAI YET. And let today be a celebration of all that’s come, as well as all that’s still left to be told. We couldn’t do it without you.
We made it.
Strike First. Strike Hard. No Mercy.
— Josh Heald, Jon Hurwitz, Hayden Schlossberg”
Be that as it may, people are still wondering why the renewal of the sixth season was delayed. We speculate the reason be the showrunners’ indulgence in another project, Obliterated, which occupied the latter half of 2022. Once the series wrapped up filming in November 2022 and the post-production concluded, they started working up on Cobra Kai.
In a conversation with Deadline, Hayden Schlossberg mentioned the possibility of a sixth season, saying:
“We have an end in mind. How many seasons it takes to get there, we don’t know. We’re enjoying making it so much. If it gets tiring to us, we’ll stop before that; we have a few more seasons already planned out.”
What can we expect to happen in Cobra Kai season 6?
Since Netflix has not provided any official plotline, we will stick to our previous assumption for this bit:
“Previous seasons of Cobra Kai left us wondering what would happen after Terry Silver’s cheating antics are out in the open, which led to his arrest. With this, the future of Cobra Kai has been put into the dark since Kim Da-Eun has a 50% stake, she might use students from her dojos under the name of Cobra Kai.
In addition to this, there is a possibility of a civil war looming in the Cobra Kai future that can be ignited by Mike Barnes if he leads Terry’s former students to combat the students of Kim Da-Eun.
Season 6 will also observe the rise in power of Kreese now that he has escaped from prison. The only person that he will expectedly turn to is Kim Da-Eun, the granddaughter of his former master.
On a different tangent, Johnny is having a baby with Carmen, and the due date has not been mentioned. This could affect Johnny’s attendance at the Sekai Takai.”
Who are the expected cast members in Cobra Kai Season 6?
We expect the majority of the cast members to reprise their respective roles in Cobra Kai season 6. These include:
- Ralph Macchio as Daniel LaRusso
- William Zabka as Johnny Lawrence
- Courtney Henggeler as Amanda LaRusso
- Xolo Maridueña as Miguel Diaz
- Tanner Buchanan as Robby Keene
- Mary Mouser as Samantha LaRusso
- Jacob Bertrand as Hawk
- Gianni DeCenzo as Demetri
- Martin Kove as John Kreese
- Vanessa Rubio as Carmen Diaz
- Peyton List as Tory Nichols
- Griffin Santopietro as Anthony LaRusso
- Dallas Dupree Young as Kenny Payne
- Yuji Okumoto as Chozen
- Oona O’Brien as Devon
- Alicia Hannah-Kim as Kim Da-Eun
When can we expect Cobra Kai season 6 to release on Netflix?
Speaking to Deadline, the sixth and final season of Cobra Kai is all set to go into production in the late spring, which implicitly points to the filming process beginning in the second half of May, or even early June. One of the brighter pictures of the show is that, unlike high-end fantasy shows, it does not require a long post-production process, owing to its short episodes and less VFX.
If we take an educated guess, in 20 months, Cobra Kai has released three seasons, beginning with the release of season 3 in January 2021, followed by season 4 in December 2021, and finally, the fifth season in September 2022. Since the streaming giant has renewed the sixth season after so long, we can only expect the final season to hit its library in early 2024. Corroborating with the assumption, Netflix Life states, “The odds are that Cobra Kai season 6 will premiere sometime between December 2023 and February 2024.”