Long-simmering tensions, unexpected alliances, and constantly changing relationships are the foundation of Cobra Kai. For years, fans have followed the romantic drama between on-screen characters. For a while, fewer people were aware that some of the most intriguing relationship developments were taking place completely off camera.
When Tanner Buchanan and Mary Mouser, who play rivals-turned-romantic-interests Robby Keene and Samantha LaRusso on the show, appeared at the Cobra Kai series finale premiere in Los Angeles in February 2025 holding hands and sporting matching rings, it was the most talked-about revelation. They announced their engagement on Instagram in less than a day.
“We’re so happy to finally share that we’re engaged,” was part of the caption. We are celebrating the end of one chapter and the start of a new one at this very special time in our lives. It seems that viewers who had spent years witnessing Robby and Sam’s strained on-screen relationship had been witnessing two individuals who were secretly deeply in love.
It was more intriguing because of how skillfully they had concealed it. The fan perception of the two, who had been working together since 2017, was that they were just close friends and coworkers. In retrospect, some fans cited minor incidents, such as Buchanan going to a filming project with Mouser without being a guest himself or the two showing up together at Ralph Macchio’s Hollywood star ceremony, and claimed that the warning signs were always present. That might be the case. Alternatively, people might simply be adept at reading stories backward.
The origins of Jacob Bertrand and Peyton List are somewhat different, but they are both incredibly endearing. When they portrayed siblings in the 2016 Disney Channel movie The Swap, the two first crossed paths years prior to Cobra Kai. They parted ways, got back in touch on the Cobra Kai set, and eventually announced their relationship in early 2022.
At the time, Bertrand told reporters that he had never dated a coworker before and called it a “trial by fire.” They passed, by most accounts. In late 2024, List described Bertrand as a “authentic, genuine soul” and stated that she has complete faith in him. They have appeared in a short film together, walked the red carpet together, and appear to be genuinely happy from every angle.
Hannah Kepple and Xolo Maridueña are also present, although their tales concluded differently. Kepple, who plays Moon, and Maridueña, who plays Miguel Diaz, dated for about three years beginning in 2019. Kepple once talked about how their relationship began slowly, becoming friendly at first, then flirtatious, and finally something more. Around 2022, they quietly broke up, removing any traces of their relationship from social media in the manner that people do when a breakup is genuine and not for show.
Relationships among the older cast members are typically more stable. Since 1987, Ralph Macchio and Phyllis Fierro have been wed. Both of them were fifteen when they first met. By all accounts, that is a long time, and Macchio has discussed his marriage with the quiet assurance that comes from having truly figured something out. Since 2008, William Zabka and Stacie Zabka have been wed. Since at least 2016, Martin Kove and Mary Scavo Squire have appeared on red carpets together for nearly ten years.
The degree to which each of these relationships evolved or deepened during the course of the show is what makes them stand out. Over the course of several seasons, Cobra Kai brought people together for extended periods of time on set, and for some of them, that closeness became something enduring.
Although relationships have always been formed on sets, there is something unique about this cast and this show that seems to have made it particularly fruitful. Perhaps it’s because karate training is a physically demanding job that necessitates genuine body trust. Or perhaps they simply had a genuine affection for one another. In any case, the actual tale of who ended up with whom on Cobra Kai proved to be a kind of conclusion in and of itself.
