Serendipity seems to follow Ralph Macchio — and it most recently took him to Australia.
In October, Coldplay released the song “The Karate Kid,” and it’s exactly what you think that it’s about, all the way down to the lyrics about “Daniel.” That, after all, is the name of the lead character played by Macchio in three “The Karate Kid” movies and 6 seasons of Netflix’s “Cobra Kai.” After Macchio heard the tune, he shared it on social media — and that’s when Coldplay concocted a plan. Frontman Chris Martin asked Macchio to come back to Australia, where they were playing a series of dates, and film the music video. The ruse included bringing the actor on stage to assist perform “The Karate Kid.”
“It was just certainly one of those whirlwind things,” says Macchio, who just returned from Down Under. “It’s just a phenomenal track. It blew my mind that he wrote the song, just from the film, which meant a lot to him. We definitely had an impact 41 years ago, at the very least for a young Chris Martin and Coldplay. It never ceases to amaze me, the emotions and feelings that the unique film still carries through the many years.”
Macchio is about to experience one other certainly one of those moments. As the ultimate season of “Cobra Kai” posts its next five episodes (there are still five to go) this month, Macchio is ready to receive his star on the Hollywood Walk of Fame. And his honor can be fittingly placed near the plaque for his late co-star Pat Morita, aka Mr. Miyagi.
“That’s just perfectly wonderful at this point in my life,” Macchio says. The actor, at a youthful 63, is someway a decade older than Morita was in the unique 1984 film. “It’s only fitting I can be Miyagi-adjacent till the tip of time, and I couldn’t be prouder and more honored to have that sort of placement. I remember him saying having a star on the Walk of Fame was probably the most important highlight of his profession, coming from humble beginnings. So I’ll get to channel just a little little bit of the love that he still sprinkles on this ‘Karate Kid’ universe.”
It’s also an entire profession full circle moment for Macchio, who remembers visiting the Walk of Fame as a teen within the late Seventies when he moved to Hollywood from his native Long Island, N.Y. to offer acting a shot.
“It was the land of hopes and dreams, and I remember I’d walk on Hollywood Boulevard on the lookout for Gene Kelly’s star,” Macchio says. “I desired to be Gene Kelly, ever since my youngest memory. I used to look at the old movie musicals with my mom. And so seeing all those names like Clark Gable, which come from a whole lot of the movies and tv shows that I grew up with, it never seemed obtainable.”
Before long, he had a daily role on “Eight Is Enough.” Then got here his breakout role in Francis Ford Coppola’s 1983 feature “The Outsiders,” followed a 12 months later by that life-changing moment in “The Karate Kid.” That crane kick. Wax on, wax off. Daniel-san. All iconic popular culture moments which are eternally attached to Macchio. “People still remember where they saw ‘The Karate Kid,’” he says. “I’m incredibly grateful, and feel privileged to be blessed enough to bring joy to people through a personality.”
He also starred in the primary two “Karate Kid” sequels and held a serious role in 1992’s “My Cousin Vinny,” the Joe Pesci starrer that’s in infinite heavy rotation on basic cable. “I at all times call it the late-for-dinner movie,” he says. “If it’s on, you’re going to be late for dinner because you may have one other setup that’s going to repay and you may have to follow the following one.”
But then got here the lean years, which Macchio chronicled in his recent memoir, “Waxing On: The Karate Kid and Me.” Macchio was inspired by the philosophy of certainly one of his idols, Michael Caine, who talked about capitalizing on the difficulties you would possibly face in acting and in life.
“I’ve learned to try this,” he says. “There have been some difficult times so far as profession goes and where I’d wanted it to be. But those are also the years that I used to be here for my kids at a really young age. It was perfect, especially with this great resurgence and groundswell act that I’m going through at once. I almost couldn’t have written it higher, because I get to enjoy it, and it just keeps giving. I mean, the fans never let it disappear.”
Indeed, Macchio never stopped working. Within the 2000s, he held a recurring role on “Ugly Betty” and was given several opportunities to play versions of himself — most of which he turned down. But he embraced just a few, including on HBO’s “Entourage.”
“If I could inform you the quantity of times it was pitched — I said no 90% of the time,” he says. “I went through a phase where I’d joke that my name was more famous than I used to be. ‘Entourage’ was the primary time I played myself, and so I used to be proud since it was a cool industry selection, and a fairly darn good episode as well.”
Then there was the Funny or Die parody “Wax On, F*ck Off,” from filmmaker Todd Holland, which toyed with Macchio’s nice guy persona by attempting to turn him right into a Hollywood bad boy. “It was the right time when individuals with bad behavior were being rewarded, and I considered myself a superb guy,” he says. “So how could I attempt to make myself more relevant with what works in in Hollywood?
But the actual groundwork for “Cobra Kai” got here when he and William Zabka guest starred on “How I Met Your Mother” — by which Neil Patrick Harris’ character Barney wanted the hero of the “The Karate Kid” at his party. When Macchio showed up, he was dissatisfied as he’d considered Johnny Lawrence (Zabka) the nice guy.
That dynamic, after all, became the center of “Cobra Kai,” a brand new tackle the “Karate Kid” characters from Josh Heald, Jon Hurwitz and Hayden Schlossberg. Across the time that show began development (originally at YouTube Originals), Macchio had landed a really different sort of role as a vice cop in HBO’s gritty drama “The Deuce.”
“He’s every thing that you simply dream of once you’re take into consideration meeting your heroes,” Hurwitz says. “He’s a sort person. He’s a family man. It extends to how he carries himself on set because the No. 1 on the decision sheet. He’s a job model to a complete group of young actors on our show.”
Heald interjects: “It’s easy to see, upon meeting him for the very first time, that he’s one of the vital authentic people you’ll ever meet. He’s thoughtful as a performer and a producer and now a director, and in the best way that you simply want as a collaborator.”
Now, as “Cobra Kai” ends, Macchio says the timing “just feels right” to “land it but in an amazing way.” But this isn’t the tip for Macchio as Daniel LaRusso. He’ll revive the character again opposite Jackie Chan in “The Karate Kid: Legends,” which takes place three years after the events of “Cobra Kai.”
“It was not a fast decision, since it was about protecting the Daniel LaRusso character, and finding where he could be at that time, after which protecting the entire legacy within the Miyagi-verse,” says Macchio. “Once we were in a position to line that up, for the ‘Cobra Kai’ story to steer into the brand new film — although they’re separate ecosystems — all of it made sense for me. Then, working with Jackie was just super exciting. I began this on the large screen. How cool is it to get it back to the large screen?”
As for what’s next, Macchio is keen on pursuing more directing and hopes to assist Heald, Hurwitz and Schlossberg turn a Mr. Miyagi origins series into fruition. Plus, he desires to explore other characters beyond the “Karate Kid” universe.
Will “The Karate Kid: Legends” mark his final bow as Daniel? “I don’t wish to overstay the welcome of a personality that’s so beloved,” he says. “But he’s aging like I’m, so there could possibly be other areas to explore as well. Never say never.”
