The Karate Kid (2010): cast, story & where to watch

Released in 2010, The Karate Kid is an action, drama, adventure and family film directed by Harald Zwart, running about 140 minutes. “A Challenge He Never Imagined. A Teacher He Never Expected.” — that tagline sets the tone.

What it’s about. Twelve-year-old Dre Parker could have been the most popular kid in Detroit, but his mother's latest career move has landed him in China. Dre immediately falls for his classmate Mei Ying but the cultural differences make such a friendship impossible. Even worse, Dre's feelings make him an enemy of the class bully, Cheng. With no friends in a strange land, Dre has nowhere to turn but maintenance man Mr. Han, who is a kung fu master. As Han teaches Dre that kung fu is not about punches and parries, but maturity and calm, Dre realizes that facing down the bullies will be the fight of his life.

Who’s in it. The Karate Kid stars Jaden Smith as Dre Parker, Jackie Chan as Mr. Han, Taraji P. Henson as Sherry Parker and Yu Rongguang as Master Li, among others.

How it landed. With an audience score of 6.5/10, The Karate Kid has drawn a solid, mixed-to-positive response. It went on to earn $359.1M at the box office.

Where to watch. In US you can stream it on Netflix and rent or buy it from Amazon Video, Apple TV Store, Google Play Movies and YouTube. See the full, country-by-country breakdown on our where to watch The Karate Kid page.

If you liked it. Fans of The Karate Kid tend to enjoy The Dark Knight, The Lord of the Rings: The Return of the King, Inception and The Lord of the Rings: The Fellowship of the Ring.