William Zabka

William Michael Zabka (/ˈzæbkə/; born October 20, 1965)^[2][3] is an American actor. He portrayed Johnny Lawrence in The Karate Kid (1984), The Karate Kid Part II (1986) and the TV series Cobra Kai (2018–2025).^[4]

William Zabka
Zabka at GalaxyCon Richmond in 2019
Born	William Michael Zabka (1965-10-20) October 20, 1965 (age 59) New York City, New York, U.S.
Education	California State University, Northridge (dropped out)
Occupation(s)	Actor and martial artist
Years active	1982–present
Height	180 cm (5 ft 11 in)[1]
Spouse	Stacie Zabka ​ (m. 2008)​
Children	2

Zabka's career took off with The Karate Kid, despite having no prior karate training. During the 1980s, he appeared in the films Just One of the Guys (1985), Back to School (1986), and the television series The Equalizer (1986–1989). In the 1990s and 2000s, Zabka focused on independent films and filmmaking. In 2004, he was nominated for an Academy Award for co-writing and producing the short film Most.^[5] Zabka continued directing, including music videos for Rascal Flatts. In 2018, he reprised his role as Johnny Lawrence in the YouTube Red and Netflix series Cobra Kai, which he co-executive produces with Ralph Macchio. The series, set 33 years after the original film, explores the re-opening of the Cobra Kai dojo and the rekindling of the rivalry between Johnny Lawrence and Daniel LaRusso.

Early life

Zabka was born in New York City, the son of Nancy, a business liaison, producer, and production assistant, and Stan Zabka, a director, writer, and composer.^[6] Zabka has a brother and a sister. Stan is of Czech and German descent. He was born in Des Moines, Iowa.^[7] He worked as production manager on many motion pictures, including the Chuck Norris film Forced Vengeance (1982).^[8]

In 1983, Zabka graduated from El Camino Real Charter High School in Los Angeles, before briefly attending California State University, Northridge and majoring in film.^[9]

Career

Zabka's breakout acting role came in his first movie, The Karate Kid (1984). Zabka played Johnny Lawrence, the main antagonist to the title character and protagonist played by Ralph Macchio. At the time, Zabka had no training in karate, but was an accomplished wrestler.^[10] Participating in the film inspired Zabka to learn the martial art of Tang Soo Do and he later earned a green belt.^[4]

Later in the 1980s, Zabka appeared in the comedy movies Just One of the Guys (1985) and Back to School (1986). He co-starred on the CBS television series The Equalizer as the son of the title character (1986–89). Zabka also played Jack, Audrey's jock boyfriend, in National Lampoon's European Vacation (1985). Zabka later tried to step away from playing the class bully character. In an interview, Zabka mentioned that he was sometimes hassled in public by random people due to the villainous characters he was best known for.^[11][12]

During the 1990s and 2000s, Zabka acted mostly in independent films while studying to be a filmmaker. In 2003, he wrote and produced the short film Most (aka The Bridge) shot on location in the Czech Republic and Poland. Most had its world premiere at the Sundance Film Festival in 2003 and won numerous awards at prestigious film festivals, including Best of Festival at the Palm Springs International Festival of Short Films in 2003. In 2004, Zabka was nominated for an Academy Award for Most in the Live Action Short Film category.^[11][12][13]

Zabka in 2016

In 2007, Zabka directed and starred in a music video for the band No More Kings' song, "Sweep the Leg." The video stars Zabka as a caricature of himself, living in a trailer in the desert and obsessed with his role in The Karate Kid. The video includes cameos by several of the original Karate Kid cast members, including Martin Kove and Ralph Macchio.^[14][15][16]

In 2010, Zabka directed Rascal Flatts in their music video for the song "Why Wait" and also directed the video for their 2017 hit "Yours If You Want It." That same year, Zabka made a cameo appearance in the comedy movie Hot Tub Time Machine.

In 2013, Zabka and Macchio guest starred in the season 8 episode of How I Met Your Mother, "The Bro Mitzvah." Zabka also appeared in several episodes of the sitcom's ninth season, playing a fictional version of himself. Zabka also directed commercials for clients including Little Tikes and Verizon at Heresy in Venice, California.^[17]

On August 4, 2017, it was announced that Zabka would reprise his role as Johnny Lawrence in a 10-episode Karate Kid revival series for YouTube Red titled Cobra Kai that debuted in 2018.^[18] Zabka also co-executive produces the series with Ralph Macchio. The series begins 33 years after the events of the first film, and revolves around a down and out Johnny who, seeking to rebuild his life, reopens the Cobra Kai dojo. It reignites his rivalry with a now successful Daniel LaRusso (Macchio), who has been struggling to maintain balance in his life without the guidance of his now deceased mentor, Mr. Miyagi.^[19][20]

Personal life

Zabka married his wife, Stacie, in 2008 and they have two children.^[21]

Filmography

Film

Year	Title	Role	Notes
1984	The Karate Kid	Johnny Lawrence
1985	Just One of the Guys	Greg Tolan
	National Lampoon's European Vacation	Jack
1986	The Karate Kid Part II	Johnny Lawrence	Minor role
	Back to School	Chas Osborne
	Dreams of Gold: The Mel Fisher Story	Kim Fisher	TV movie
1988	A Tiger's Tale	Randy
1989	The Karate Kid Part III	Johnny Lawrence	Archive footage
	Protect and Surf	Russell Cooper	TV Movie
1991	For Parents Only	Ted	Alternative title: Mean Parents Suck
1992	Shootfighter: Fight to the Death	Ruben	Alternative title: Shootfighter
1994	Unlawful Passage	Howie
1995	Shootfighter II	Ruben
	The Power Within	Raymond Vonn	Alternative title: Power Man
1996	To the Ends of Time	Alexander
1997	High Voltage	Bulldog
1999	Interceptors	Dave	Alternative titles: Interceptor Force Predator 3: Intercepters The Last Line of Defence
2000	Epoch	Joe	Television movie
	Python	Greg Larsen	Television movie
	Falcon Down	Security Guard John
2001	Ablaze	Curt Peters
	Mindstorm	Rojack	Alternative titles: Artificial Telepathy Project: Human Weapon
2002	Gale Force	Rance
	Python II	Greg Larsen	Television movie, credited as Billy Zabka
	Hyper Sonic	The Executive
	Landspeed	Bob Bailey
	Dark Descent	Marty (Opening credits only)	Alternative title: Descent Into Darkness
	Antibody	Otto Emmerick
2003	Most	-	Alternative title: The Bridge, screenwriter & producer
2004	Roomies	Slick Salesman	Alternative title: Wild Roomies
2007	Smiley Face	Prison guard
	Cake: A Wedding Story	Sam	Alternative title: Cake: A Wedding Comedy
	Starting from Scratch	Bill Bowman
2010	Hot Tub Time Machine	Rick Steelman
	Mean Parents Suck	Detective Ted Clement
2011	Cross	Griff
2014	Where Hope Grows	Milton Malcolm
2015	The Dog Who Saved Summer	Officer Johnny & Apollo (Voice)	Dual Role
2016	The Man in the Silo	Kevin
2024	The Cobra Kai Movie	Himself	Short Film

Television

Year	Title	Role	Notes
1983	The Greatest American Hero	Clarence Mortner Jr.	1 episode
1984	Gimme a Break!	Jeffery	1 episode
	CBS Schoolbreak Special	Rick Peterson	1 episode
1984–1985	E/R	Druggie Kid/Thief	1 episode
1985–1989	The Equalizer	Scott McCall	12 episodes from "The Equalizer" (Pilot S1.E1) to "Time Present, Time Past" (S4.E16)
2001	18 Wheels of Justice	Det. Barron	1 episode
2011	Jimmy Kimmel Live!	Johnny Lawrence	1 episode
2013	Robot Chicken	Johnny Lawrence, Gibby, American Werewolf (voice)	Guest, season 6, episode 15, "Caffeine-Induced Aneurysm"
2013–2014	How I Met Your Mother	Clown/himself	Guest star (Season 8), recurring role (Season 9)
2014	Psych	Coach Bagg	Guest star: A Nightmare on State Street
2015	Gortimer Gibbon's Life on Normal Street	Sensei Jeff	Guest, season 2, episode 9, "Stanley and the Tattoo of Tall Tales"
	To Appomattox	John Rawlins	TV Miniseries
2018–2025	Cobra Kai	Johnny Lawrence	Main role, also executive producer and directed episode "Rattled"

Video games

Year	Title	Role	Notes
2020	Cobra Kai: The Karate Kid Saga Continues	Johnny Lawrence (voice)
2022	Cobra Kai 2: Dojos Rising	Johnny Lawrence (voice)

Award nominations

Year	Award	Category	Film	Result
1985	Young Artist Award	Best Young Supporting Actor in a Motion Picture Musical, Comedy, Adventure or Drama	The Karate Kid	Nominated
2004	Academy Awards	Best Live Action Short Film	Most (shared with Bobby Garabedian)