The Correct Order To Watch The Karate Kid Franchise (Including Cobra Kai)

"The Karate Kid" was never the kind of movie you'd expect to launch a decades-spanning franchise. In the age of streaming, though, everything is IP waiting to be harvested by the right media conglomerate. Hence, in the wake of "Cobra Kai," the "Karate Kid" brand has once again become a big deal, and many younger fans have discovered the property for the first time thanks to the Netflix show.

If you're interested in going back and watching through the older entries in the franchise, or if you've just heard the recent hype and want to watch straight through from the beginning, the good news is that ordering the "Karate Kid" movies and shows is pretty simple. The release order for all movies and series up to this point is the same as the canonical chronological order, with one small asterisk that we'll explain later. So, if you want to watch the whole property in order from the beginning, it looks like this:

• "The Karate Kid" (1984)

• "The Karate Kid Part II"

• "The Karate Kid Part III"

• "The Karate Kid" (1989 TV series)

• "The Next Karate Kid"

• "The Karate Kid" (2010)

• "Cobra Kai"

• "Karate Kid: Legends"

Keep reading for a deeper breakdown of the franchise timeline and why this is still the best way to watch the property today.

Some franchises get pretty complicated when it comes to prequels, spin-offs, reboots, and the like. Fortunately, "The Karate Kid" is still quite simple. It's essentially one trilogy of films, a movie successor pairing Pat Morita's Mr. Miyagi with entirely new characters, a reboot/spin-off starring Jackie Chan, and the six seasons of "Cobra Kai," plus the (at the time of writing) upcoming theatrical film "Karate Kid: Legends."

You might think that "Legends," the 2010 "Karate Kid," and even the Hilary Swank-led "The Next Karate Kid" wouldn't be necessary for the real, canonical story, but "Legends" actually makes them all essential viewing, in a way. The 2025 film will bring together Jackie Chan's Mr. Han and Ralph Macchio's Daniel LaRusso as co-senseis of new protagonist Li Fong (Ben Wang). In other words, the new movie makes the 2010 "Karate Kid" canon with the earlier films and "Cobra Kai." Similarly, because Mr. Miyagi is also in "The Next Karate Kid," it's still part of the overarching story too.

The only "core" piece of the franchise with dubious status in the canon these days is the 1989 animated "Karate Kid" series, but I've still opted to place that in release order (for reasons I'll explain in a bit). Let's take a look at each individual entry in the franchise, how they relate to one another, and the time gaps in between.

The film that started it all is still one of the best entries in the entire franchise. Released in theaters in 1984, "The Karate Kid" was a pretty clear attempt to get some of that "Rocky" money that was so abundant at the time. And while the blend of combat sports movie and '80s teen high school dramedy might not seem like a natural fit at first, the chemistry between Macchio and Morita elevated "The Karate Kid" to its own unique spot in cinema history.

Make no mistake: there is no "Karate Kid" franchise without Pat Morita. He's the heart and soul of the 1984 movie, blending his comedic chops and dramatic acting talents to craft a character who went straight from the big screen into the Hollywood hall of fame.

The first "Karate Kid" movie also introduces lots of core characters who return later and become even more central to the story — namely, Daniel's rival Johnny Lawrence (William Zabka) and his brutal Cobra Kai sensei John Kreese (Martin Kove). Characters like Daniel's mother Lucille (Randee Heller) and love interest Ali Mills (Elisabeth Shue) also return in "Cobra Kai."

The second entry in the original "Karate Kid" trilogy isn't as strong as its predecessor, but it's still pretty fun, and it gets a lot of credit simply for embracing a totally different location, aesthetic, and storyline. Rather than staying in California like its predecessor, the movie mostly takes place in Mr. Miyagi's hometown in Okinawa, where he and Daniel both confront rivals new and old.

The added texture to Miyagi's character is interesting, even if the final battle is a bit overdramatic this time out (yes, even more so than the first movie). But like "The Karate Kid," "Part II" sets up several storylines and characters that "Cobra Kai" develops much further. Chozen Toguchi (Yuji Okumoto) is probably the most important piece added to the larger "Karate Kid" puzzle here, although there are other characters and narrative details that come back later on.

For years, "The Karate Kid Part III" was seen as a total mess — an instance of a basic idea drawn out too long over too many movies. Even Ralph Macchio has said many times that he never thought the script was especially good. But with "Cobra Kai," this oft-skipped entry in the franchise has become essential viewing.

Terry Silver (Thomas Ian Griffith) is introduced here, and the Cobra Kai dojo returns. The entire back half of "Cobra Kai" basically couldn't exist without those two additions. That doesn't necessarily make the movie itself any less of a disaster, but you can hopefully find some solace in the knowledge that it all pays off in the end. Griffith in particular, while nearly incomprehensible in "Part III," is phenomenal as the ultimate big bad of "Cobra Kai," which alone makes this installment a fun watch in retrospect.

In the '80s, cartoon tie-ins were all the rage. And since 'The Karate Kid" had become such an institution, it only made sense at the time to turn it into an animated adventure for kids on TV.

"The Karate Kid" premiered on NBC just a few months after the release of "Part III," and it didn't last long. Only 13 episodes were produced in total, following animated versions of Daniel (Joey Dedio) and Mr. Miyagi (Robert Ito) on a series of lightly mystical adventures. This alone is enough to disregard the show from the overriding canon of the franchise, as there's nothing explicitly magical in any other part of the "Karate Kid" universe.

The magical adventure spin may have made sense for a cartoon released in 1989, but it wasn't enough to get the series to catch on. These days, the biggest point of interest here is probably that Pat Morita returned to record some in-character narration ahead of each episode (despite not voicing Miyagi himself on the show).

There were five years between the release of "The Karate Kid Part III" in 1989 and "The Next Karate Kid" in 1994. Ralph Macchio was out and Hilary Swank was in as Julie Pierce, with the story taking Mr. Miyagi to the East Coast for another round of troubled-teen karate instruction.

The film itself is lackluster, as critics at the time were quick to note. (/Film's BJ Colangelo, in contrast, is a steadfast defender of "The Next Karate Kid.") While Morita is great as usual, and Swank commands attentions on screen even so early on in her career, the script is a more preposterous, less interesting retread of the first "Karate Kid" movie, lacking even the absurdity that at least makes "Part III" kind of fun.

Still, the creators of "Cobra Kai" have claimed that any film featuring Mr. Miyagi is canon to their show. The Netflix series even goes so far as to fix a contradiction created by "The Next Karate Kid," where Mr. Miyagi's given first name is "Keisuke" instead of "Nariyoshi." It's a tiny detail, but "Cobra Kai" adds in a little plot point later explaining why the man might have had two different names.

After "The Next Karate Kid," the franchise went dormant for a decade and a half, and many would have expected it to stay there forever. But in 2010, we got a reboot of sorts starring Jackie Chan and Jaden Smith. Completely unconnected at the time to the previous movies, this film, which carries the same title as the 1984 original, is only just now being integrated into the franchise properly thanks to Chan's return in "Karate Kid: Legends."

In most ways that matter, this is actually more of a proper remake than a reboot. Every part of the story is ripped straight out of the original film, from the bully gang and evil sensei to the beats of the final tournament match at the end. Chan's Mr. Han even follows Mr. Miyagi's same emotional beats, albeit with different motivations. The only differences are that the whole thing is moved to contemporary Beijing, and that despite the name of the movie, everyone practices kung fu, not karate.

Finally, after five movies, you can watch the reason we're really here today: "Cobra Kai." Or, like most people, you could just watch the first "Karate Kid" and then jump straight to the show,. But we're talking proper chronological order here, so this is where the hit Netflix (and, before that, YouTube Red/Premium) series falls.

"Cobra Kai" is great. It's campy, ridiculous, and at times overly nostalgic, but none of that gets in the way of the fun. It's also got a terrific ensemble that blends a strong young cast with pretty much every single actor who's ever appeared in a "Karate Kid" movie, and the storylines, while a little absurd at points, are never boring. The show deserves all the credit it gets for revitalizing the franchise and retroactively making the previous sequels way better. And with "Cobra Kai" now complete after six seasons, you can watch the whole thing from start to finish at your own pace.

The newest theatrical entry in the "Karate Kid" franchise may not be out yet, but we know enough about it already to place it confidently at this final spot on our list. The film is canonical with "Cobra Kai," the old movies, and the Jackie Chan reboot, and is officially set three years after the events of the Netflix series.

In general, "Legends" looks like it won't engage that much with the actual substance of "Cobra Kai." However, since Ralph Macchio plays Daniel LaRusso in both of these titles, there are bound to be various Easter eggs and points of connection. "Karate Kid: Legends" is currently scheduled to reach theaters on May 30, 2025.

Because the chronological order and release order for the "Karate Kid" franchise are basically the same, the only real tweak to make for a full viewing would be removing the more extraneous entries entirely. The animated series can easily be disregarded, as it isn't canon, and it has little to do with anything else, even the original movies. You could also skip "The Next Karate Kid" if you wanted to, though Morita's performance alone makes it somewhat worthwhile for fans.

One other idea would be to watch straight through while skipping the 2010 remake, then plugging it in after "Cobra Kai" to get caught up on Chan's side of the story before "Legends." But as long as you get the first three movies (or, at the very least, the original 1984 film) and "Cobra Kai" in there, you're in pretty good shape.