Sony Delays ‘Karate Kid,’ ‘Kraven the Hunter’ Release Date

Looks like a shake-up is happening in Culver City. After initially announcing release dates for “Kraven the Hunter” and “Karate Kid” during the 2024 Summer and Christmas seasons, Sony has decided to delay both films and swap their seasonal positions.

The upcoming “Karate Kid” movie, which sees Ralph Macchio and Jackie Chan reprising their roles from various iterations of the franchise, was originally slated to hit theaters on December 13, 2024. The film will now open six months later on May 30, 2025. A source close to the project told IndieWire that the move will allow the final season of the Macchio-led series “Cobra Kai” to conclude before the film hits theaters. The new positioning also allows the family-friendly film to target a wider audience during summer vacation for many K-12 students.

The move was likely necessitated by the fact that “Cobra Kai” had its final season pushed back by the strikes that brought Hollywood to a halt for much of 2023. In a statement last year on social media, creators Josh Heald, Jon Hurwitz, and Hayden Schlossberg wrote, “Our day one goal with ‘Cobra Kai’ has always been to end it on our terms, leaving the Valley in the time and place we’ve always imagined. So it is with immense pride and thankfulness that we are able to announce that achievement.”

Unfortunately, this achievement was delayed a few months later when the WGA and SAG-AFTRA went on strike after tense negotiations over new…