Even the current No. 1 show on Netflix can’t afford AC/DC! Creators of the popular series Cobra Kai have been hoping to work the legendary rock band’s classic hit “Thunderstuck” into an episode over the course of its four seasons, but the price is too steep.
In a new interview with Entertainment Weekly, Cobra Kai co-creator Jon Hurwitz revealed that he and the show’s other writers had “Thunderstuck” in mind for a montage in a Season 4 scene in which Johnny Lawrence (William Zabka) puts Daniel LaRusso (Ralph Macchio) through some grueling Eagle Fang training. And it wasn’t the first time they wanted to feature the iconic 1990 tune.
“We had ‘Thunderstruck’ written into the script,” explained Hurwitz. “We’ve written ‘Thunderstruck’ into the script several times over the years, and we’ve never been able to afford it in that moment or to make that choice [to spend the money on it] right now.”
Without the AC/DC track, the creators had to turn to an alternate tune, and music supervisor Michelle Johnson ended up landing “Breakin’ Outta Hell” by Australian rockers Airbourne, who’ve garnered many comparisons to AC/DC over the years.
AC/DC aren’t the only band whose price is currently too high for Cobra Kai. “A lot of times we write things into the script, but sometimes we’ll write something into the script that we can’t afford,” added Hurwitz. “I mean, our fantasy is having the kind of music budget that would allow for us to have nonstop AC/DC and Bon Jovi and Guns N’ Roses.”
One big song the Cobra Kai team did get its grip on was “Girls, Girls, Girls” by Mötley Crüe. The tune soundtracks a scene in the latest season in which Lawrence attempts to recruit female students for his Eagle Fang dojo.
Cobra Kai has featured many ’80s hard rock and metal references over the years, including a funny scene this season in which one character calls out his neighbor for blasting “shitty Metallica,” only to be told it was actually fellow thrash veterans Exodus.
