'Cobra Kai' Showrunner Gets Real About the Show's "Endgame"

From Good Housekeeping

Even if you're not a hardcore fan of the original Karate Kid films, Cobra Kai is still a solidly entertaining show to stream on Netflix.

Picking up where Robert Mark Kamen's original films left off, the show throws us back into the lives of karate prodigies Johnny Lawrence (William Zabka) and Daniel LaRusso (Ralph Macchio) 34 years after the two faced off at the All-Valley Karate Championship. After reigniting their age-old rivalry, the two wind up rediscovering their love of martial arts, which leads them both to opening up competing dojos. Needless to say, this creates all sorts of drama that transcends to their kids and gets messier by the minute.

As viewers of the first three seasons know, the show's got it all — '80s nostalgia, heart-stopping drama, light-hearted humor, and many epic karate battle scenes. Now that the show is three seasons in, fans are ready to find out what's to come next in the upcoming season.

Here's all that we know about season 4 of Cobra Kai:

When will Cobra Kai season 4 come out on Netflix?

Right now, it sounds like the cast and crew of Cobra Kai are aiming to shoot season 4 in early 2021 — at least, that was the plan in December, according to what co-creator and writer Jon Hurwitz told Gamesradar.com. Co-creator Hayden Schlossberg also confirmed this timeline when she tweeted in early January that everyone was traveling to Atlanta to begin production.

In terms of a release date, Jon tweeted back in November that he "imagines" season 4 would come out "roughly one year after season 3." If that's the case, fans can expect Cobra Kai season 4 to premiere on Netflix around January of 2022. That said, the coronavirus pandemic has been causing all sorts of production delays across the board, so we'll just have to wait and see.

Who will be in the cast of Cobra Kai season 4?

Karate Kid enthusiasts were excited to see Elisabeth Shue come back as Johnny's all-time crush Ali in season 3. Likewise, Cobra Kai's latest season paid tribute to The Karate Kid Part II with the return of Kumiko (Tamlyn Tomita) and Chozen (Yuji Okumoto). Though we can't say for sure, it's probably safe to assume that Cobra Kai creators will bring back another handful of throwback characters for fans of the classic '80s films. One of those will likely be Thomas Ian Griffith, who played antagonist Terry Silver in The Karate Kid Part III.

But guest star speculation aside, it sounds like all of your favorites from Miyagi-Do, Cobra Kai, and Eagle Fang and more will be back, including:

• 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

• Owen Morgan as Bert

• Aedin Mincks as Mitch

• Vanessa Rubio as Carmen

• Peyton List as Tory Nichols

• Khalil Everage as Chris

• Joe Seo as Kyler

• Hannah Kepple as Moon

Are there any Cobra Kai season 4 spoilers?

If you watched season 3, you know that tensions are extremely high between Cobra Kai, Miyagi-Do, and Johnny's new dojo Eagle Fang. Following an intense karate fight at the LaRusso home, longtime karate rivals Daniel and Johnny realize that they must start working together to take down Kreese (Martin Kove). In the season 3 finale, the two are seen training their students in the Miyagi-Do haven together, indicating that a new chapter for the frenemies is about to begin in season 4.

Meanwhile, it appears Kreese is beginning to train Johnny's son, Robby (Tanner Buchanan), after taking advantage of the teen's hard feelings toward Daniel, his father, Miguel (Xolo Maridueña), and Sam (Mary Mouser). Though Cobra Kai is down Hawk (Jacob Bertrand) and Miguel, Kreese is still working on making two of his star fighters, Kyler (Joe Seo) and Tory (Peyton List), even more aggressive. On top of that, Kreese may be getting recruitment help in the days ahead from one of his fellow Vietnam soldiers Terry Silver (Thomas Ian Griffith).

Will season 4 be the last season of Cobra Kai?

So far, the show has only been renewed for one more season. But if showrunner Josh Heald has it his way, he told TVLine.com that there are still a few more Cobra Kai chapters beyond season 4 to explore.

"We have an endgame in our heads. We’ve had one for quite some time, and it’s not in season 4. It’s well beyond that," Josh said to the outlet. "In our minds, we have seasons’ worth of story that is necessary to tell before we get to that endgame ..."

Of course, he does realize that Netflix will make the ultimate decision: "Can we write to that endgame? Can we know that it’s coming? That’s not always the case with television and we respect that. For now, we’re continuing to write at the same speed and with the same path that we set out with from the beginning."

How can I watch Cobra Kai season 4?

Seasons 1, 2, and 3 of Cobra Kai are available to stream now on Netflix — likewise, season 4 will also be accessible on the platform when its released.

If you don't currently subscribe to Netflix, a new subscription starts at $8.99 per month. Once you sign up, you'll have unlimited access to countless TV shows and movies, which you can enjoy on your smart TV, game console, set-top box, Blu-ray player, smartphone, tablet, PC, and laptop.

How can I watch the Karate Kid movies in order while waiting for Cobra Kai's return?

Knowing that it'll be a bit before Cobra Kai season 4 is released, fans should consider rewatching the original Karate Kid movies. After all, it's very likely that the show's writers will continue to bring back more characters from the original flicks. Here's how to watch them all in order:

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