Cobra Kai to depart YouTube in search of a new streaming home

Last Updated on August 5, 2021

Taking place 34 years after THE KARATE KID, YouTube's Cobra Kai followed a down-and-out Johnny Lawrence (William Zabka) as he sought redemption by reopening the infamous Cobra Kai karate dojo, which reignited his rivalry with a now successful Daniel LaRusso (Ralph Macchio). While I certainly wasn't expecting much out of Cobra Kai, it came as quite the surprise when the series revealed itself to be incredibly fun. It also wound up being critically-acclaimed, even scoring 100% on Rotten Tomatoes, which made it a no-brainer for YouTube to bring the series back for a second and third season, but where is that third season?

Based on when the last two seasons of Cobra Kai were released, we should have seen the release of the third season by now, and according to Deadline, it seems that the reason for the delay has to do with the series moving to a new streaming platform. The outlet states that YouTube is in the process of releasing the third season to Sony Pictures TV, who are shopping the series to other streamers, with Netflix and Hulu at the top of the short-list of potential homes. Deadline couldn't confirm, but the streaming service which does win Cobra Kai will also have access to the first two seasons of the series on a non-exclusive basis. As for why YouTube is letting one of its most-watched series go, the company has begun to move away from original scripted programming in recent years, and while they were eager to debut the third season, they told their partners at Sony Pictures TV that they wouldn't be renewing it for a fourth season, which led to Sony asking permission to shop the series around in order to guarantee its future.