The sixth and final season of Cobra Kai, also known as Cobra Kai VI, consists of 15 episodes and was released on Netflix. The series is a sequel to the original films of The Karate Kid franchise, focusing on the characters of Daniel LaRusso and Johnny Lawrence over 30 years after the titular film.
Unlike previous seasons, the sixth season was released in three parts of five episodes each. The first part was released on July 18, 2024, and focuses on Daniel, Johnny, and Chozen training their students for the Sekai Taikai following the demise of Cobra Kai. The second part was released on November 15, 2024, and focuses on Miyagi-Do struggling to compete in the tournament in Barcelona against both a revived Cobra Kai and the Iron Dragons, led by Terry Silver. The third and final part was released on February 13, 2025, and focuses on Johnny and Daniel training to win the tournament back in California and defeat Silver once and for all.
The sixth season was originally set to be released in 2023, but experienced delays as a result of the 2023 Hollywood labor disputes. The second part, however, got an early release date after originally receiving a November 28, 2024 release window. The season features 13 starring roles, all of which returned from previous seasons, including Gianni DeCenzo, who was a series regular in seasons 2âÂÂ4, but was demoted to a recurring cast member in the previous season. Although the first two parts received mixed reviews from critics, the third part was met more positively, and was deemed a satisfying conclusion to the series.
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On January 20, 2023, Netflix renewed Cobra Kai for a sixth and final season. At the time of the announcement, series creators Josh Heald, Jon Hurwitz, and Hayden Schlossberg stated that they wished to end the series on their terms. Heald, Hurwitz, and Schlossberg returned to executive produce the series through their production company Counterbalance Entertainment. Series stars Ralph Macchio and William Zabka also serve as executive producers alongside Will Smith, James Lassiter and Caleeb Pinkett for Westbrook Entertainment and Susan Ekins for Sony Pictures Television. Production on the season was slated to begin in mid-2023. Hurwitz confirmed that writing was underway by April 2023. The following month however, production was halted by the 2023 Writers Guild of America strike but writing resumed in late 2023.
Sean Kanan once again reprised his role as Mike Barnes. Barnes initially starred in The Karate Kid Part III (1989) and first returned to the franchise in season 5 of Cobra Kai. Kanan stated that after appearing in the previous season, he remained in contact with Hurwitz, Heald, and Sclossberg, who expressed interest in Barnes returning again. Kanan also said it was his idea for Barnes to take on a sensei role within the series. C.S. Lee was cast to portray Master Kim Sun-Yung, a character first referenced by Terry Silver in Part III.
Following the 2023 SAG-AFTRA strike, filming on the season began in Atlanta, Georgia in February 2024, and wrapped on June 10, 2024.
Leo Birenberg and Zach Robinson returned to compose the series' soundtrack once more. The first part of the soundtrack was released on July 19, 2024, with a single releasing in the week prior. A single to accompany the second part of the season was released on November 8, with the full soundtrack set to release on November 16.
The season was originally slated for a December 2023 release on Netflix but was delayed by the strikes. Later details reported that it would release in late 2024. On May 2, 2024, Netflix announced that the season would consist of 15 episodes, split into three parts of five episodes each. It is the first case of Netflix splitting an original series into thirds. The announcement also revealed that the first part would be released on July 18, 2024, followed by the second on November 28. A final release set for 2025 is being titled "The Finale Event". A teaser trailer accompanied the announcement. On July 1, an official trailer for Season 6 Part 1 was released, accompanied by "Shout It Out Loud" by Kiss. The day of the season premiere, it was announced that part two would be released on November 15 instead. The release date for part three was later revealed to be February 13, 2025.
The first part ranked in the top spot on Netlfix's most viewed shows chart for the week of July 15âÂÂ21, 2024. It received 14.8 million views within its first four days after release. During this time, 1.1 billion minutes of the season was streamed. Deadline Hollywood theorized that a three-part release caused lower viewership in its first release, but expected higher numbers after the release of the final part due to viewers who wish to binge watch the entire season at one time. In the period of July 22âÂÂ28, Cobra Kai continued to hold its spot as the most-viewed Netflix series, and received an additional 9.5 million views.
The first part of the season received largely mixed reviews from critics.
In the United States, the second part was the sixth most-viewed program on Nielsen's streaming chart with 838 million minutes viewed for the week of November 18âÂÂ24, 2024.