William Zabka

William Zabka has spent much of his career as Johnny Lawrence, the role that made him a familiar face in The Karate Kid. Born in New York City on October 20, 1965, and raised partly on Long Island before his family moved to California’s San Fernando Valley, Zabka began auditioning for the film while briefly studying film at California State University, Northridge. He had no karate training when he was cast, though he was an accomplished wrestler; the experience led him to study Tang Soo Do.

Johnny established Zabka as a particularly convincing screen antagonist, and similar parts followed in 1980s comedies including Just One of the Guys, National Lampoon’s European Vacation and Back to School. He also returned for The Karate Kid Part II and co-starred in the television series The Equaliser. However, being so closely associated with class bullies had its drawbacks, and Zabka later tried to move away from that typecasting.

His career gradually expanded behind the camera. During the 1990s and 2000s, he worked largely in independent film while developing as a filmmaker. He wrote and produced the short film Most, which premiered at the Sundance Film Festival, won Best of Festival at the 2003 Palm Springs International Festival of Short Films and earned an Academy Award nomination for Live Action Short Film. His directing work has also included music videos and commercials, while his producing credits include the documentaries White Wanderer: Mzungu and Never A Neverland.

Zabka has never been afraid to play with his screen reputation. He appeared as a fictional version of himself on How I Met Your Mother and directed and starred in No More Kings’ “Sweep the Leg” music video. The more substantial return came with Cobra Kai, which reunited him with Ralph Macchio and allowed Johnny Lawrence to become more than the adversary remembered from 1984. Across the series’ six seasons, ending in 2025, Zabka played Johnny’s failures, relationships and attempts at redemption while also serving as co-executive producer. He appeared once more as Johnny in the final scene of Karate Kid: Legends, continuing a role that has shaped—and been reshaped by—his career.