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- [00:00]
A
The audition for the Karate Kid came up and I heard the title, the Karate Kid. And I said, this is gonna be the worst title of anything I've ever heard in my life. When someone pitched that Rocky Balboa and Daniel LaRusso would have two kids that would meet and both be in trouble and they would fight crime between Newark and Philadelphia. I should kick your ass.
- [00:20]
B
You bullied me in all these ways.
- [00:22]
A
That movie, it's become a piece of everybody's childhood or life or inspiration in a way. I just watch the end of that and I'm saying, where are these mo.
- [00:34]
B
I was saying this back in the green room that I couldn't be more honored to have every speaker here. And we explained the unique significance of Cassie from earlier today. And we had a conversation about, you know, Hollywood celebrities and sports figures. And so many of these people that are going to be here have such an impact on everyone and certainly on me as well. But there is no one coming here that Mr. Ralph Macchio that has a bigger impact when the Karate Kid came out. And we are clear that your career is certainly more than simply the Karate Kid. And there's a litany of films, not the least of which my cousin Vinnie and all these beautiful, wonderful things of impact. Let's hear it again for that. Yeah, okay. That your work trans. So we are very clear that it's not like, okay, the Karate Kid is here, like Ralph Macchio is here. And we're clear. And what we want to do today is to make sure that we acknowledge and honor just the incredible impact you've had on the people in the room. I've explained certain partners and elite, long time unblinded people, mastery, the place the Karate Kid holds and our legend, our training, the video clips that we watch and endure. And by the way, for all of my lawyer friends out there, there is fair use, fair comment of what you're allowed to use clips for. So I'm very clear what we can and cannot use. All good. And what I am, like, incredibly present to is the impact you had on my life, their lives. And I feel like a little kid with such a massive space of identity, impact sitting with you. And it really is truly a dream come true, an honor for me and I thank you for being here.
- [02:27]
A
Thank you, Sean. Thank you so much.
- [02:28]
B
Thank you. Thank you. So from that place, would you mind just sharing a little bit about growing up? I know you're a northeast guy. What was life like? And, you know, prior to the acting world, Please.
- [02:42]
A
Well, I grew up on long island, which is on the other side of the two Rivers. Many people say you grew up in New Jersey, didn't you? And they don't, you know, because it kind of morphs art and life. But resita. Right. I. Mom, dad. My dad's a self made man still. Both my parents still with us. 88 now.
- [03:09]
B
Wow.
- [03:09]
A
Slowing down a bit. Thank you. That's, you know, tough at this chapter of life because it's, you know, it's changed. But I have both of them and my brother, my younger brother, about two and a half years. And it was just the four of us in kind of, you know, middle of Long Island, Dix Hills, Huntington area. My dad owned a bunch of like one or two laundromats that was sort of his.
- [03:38]
B
He.
- [03:39]
A
That was the onset of his business. And then what came from there is the cesspools would overflow from the soapy water. So he had to buy a pump truck. And then from that pump truck came the largest Long island liquid waste removal. So we did it all. We never went to college right out of high school. Grew up in Brooklyn. That's sort of the quick Cliff Notes version of my dad. So I was brought up in a working class environment. My mom worked at the office. I would have to do my time at the Laundromat on Saturdays giving change to the customers, dreaming about maybe being on Broadway or movies. Because I grew up watching what was the 4:30 movie or the Channel 11 movie, the Million Dollar Movie in New York, maybe some of the Jersey books.
- [04:29]
B
Wpix.
- [04:30]
A
Yeah, wpix. You got it. And so I come home from school. I know I'm jumping around, but I'm trying to give you like, just little pieces of what life was like for me. And my mom would have all the old musicals on. My dad would be working out during the day. Mom would have the MGM musicals and I'd watch those. And that's when I was first bitten by the bug of that, you know, that storytelling and that Gene Kelly was. I wanted to be Gene Kelly from day one. I just loved Gene Kelly. His masculinity, his smoothness, his, you know, those were bigger than life movie stars. So I started tap dancing lessons at age 3 because my dad thought it would be good for me. It wasn't in his playbook. Initially he wanted. But he didn't want me to be bashful. And so, like he was or he explained that he was as a, as a, as a kid. And my mom wanted to be Betty Grable, if you know who Betty Grable is I'm dating myself. But these are great movies, movie stars of that, that era. So that's kind of how I was bitten by the entertainment bug. And I would, you know, I always look younger for my age than I am. I'm still trying. I'm still trying.
- [05:48]
B
If you think this man looks amazing, say y. Now I am blind, but I'll go with what they say.
- [05:56]
A
So anyway, so to bring this portion in for a landing, that's what lit my fire. I enjoyed being on stage, I enjoyed telling stories, whether it was dance and I wasn't even that great. But I knew where to land and I knew how to smile and I got by on that for a bit. And in between I was dreaming could also be Tom Seaver and throw, you know, be a 20 game winner in Major league Baseball. But that was not going to happen. So I had all those kind of aspirations. But it came from a very functional, loving family. Both my parents were very supportive of anything through my schooling. Although they didn't always agree on things. I was given the, the, the opportunity to, to explore. I understood the value of a, of a dollar. My dad would still be like, you know, you see those two aluminum cans over there? Put those, you bring them, you get 10 cents. You put that in the bank. You know, it's like little, little, little. He's done that with my, my kids. So, so that's, that's the long rambling story of what got me bit from the entertainment bug. And then I got, as it happens to often, I got lucky. I was in the right place at the right time.
- [07:24]
B
And what was that?
- [07:25]
A
That was a movie called up the Academy. It's not at the top of the resume but, but. And a Bubble Yum commercial that's probably more famous. I did a Bubble Yum commercial that you could watch on YouTube and at my expense, just rip me to shreds. But it was, it played Saturday mornings and that was sort of. I went in and I got the part and then I went in for the movie up the Academy. I got the part and then at that point I was, I was, I hadn't paid my dues, but stuff was coming to me. I wound up paying my dues a little bit later after all that, the big success. And then it was about how to, how to sustain and not be at the top of the wave, you know, and that's, that's really a lot of the lessons that I've learned over the years are from. And, and so, so that's kind of how I Got into it. The Outsiders was a big. I love that movie.
- [08:26]
B
Seen the Outsiders? Yes.
- [08:32]
A
We're going to do it for Johnny all night long. So the Outsiders was a book I read when I was 12 years old, which was, you know, somewhere between falling in love with Gene Kelly and tap dance shows and wanting to be, you know, Robert De Niro or Dustin Hoffman, who are kind of my Pacino, all those guys growing up. So I read that book. It was written by a 16 year old girl, Essie Hinton, who is still with us. And I just, I wanted to be in that movie. I can. It was the first book I read without my parents saying, you have to keep reading. And so when they auditioned for that, I just, I had to have that part. I just had to. And I said it to Francis Ford Coppola. I said, I have to have this party, so I want you to read for this part. I said, no, I want this part. And somehow through it all, that was the first super dream come true for me where I set out and got exactly, exactly what I wanted and it wasn't. And I learned later that there were other actors that might have done workshops beforehand, but somehow it landed in my lap and it holds a special place.
- [09:47]
B
And what was it about that part and the Outsiders?
- [09:50]
A
I just connected. At 12 years old, I connected to that kid. Even though I didn't have that broken family life. He had an insecurity about him. He was smaller. He was kind of the runt of the litter. He was of the guys of the gang and the group. He was the one they protected. He felt a little bit inferior. And I had some of those things from the aspect of looking young for my age, not being, you know, probably going to puberty last. I'm still waiting on that. So it was a big joke. I had a swing. It was like a beach ball over the middle of the plate. But so, you know, so I connected to some of those adolescent insecurities that he was dealing with and I had. And he was a sympathetic character and I felt an affinity for, for him. And I. He was also described physically, like, to how I was dark hair, big dark eyes, kind of puppy dog elements to him. And so it just, I just felt like I could be this guy and I could. And then it was Francis Ford Coppola, who. I've seen the Godfather like 40 times. I was like, I have to make this happen. Wow.
- [11:08]
B
And. And by the way, remember Charlie Sheen? Francis Ford Coppola, his dad in Apocalypse Now. So we have a lot of Coppola Can I. These last two days? Yeah, a lot of that.
- [11:16]
A
And Emilio Estevez, his brother.
- [11:19]
B
Amen. Yes. So. So from there, the Outsiders. And what happens for you from the Outsiders?
- [11:27]
A
Well, it was, you know, that movie did well, but it did not do at its onset. And it's like any art form, it's defined over time. You know, you don't remember what won the Oscar last year, but you remember where you were when you saw, you know, ET or the Godfather or, you know, so. So art is defined over time. But that film came out, and I. And I was. I was super proud of it and super, you know, it was beyond for me because I was in that dream come true section of the onset of my career. And the audition for the Karate Kid came up, and I heard the title, the Karate Kid, and I said, this is going to be the worst title of anything I've ever heard in my life. And maybe inside my head, I wrote this in a book that I wrote my memoir called Waxing on, because you have to call it Waxing on, where I said to myself, subconsciously, maybe I hate this title so much because if I ever get the part, I'd have to carry it for the rest of my life.
- [12:41]
B
And how old were you?
- [12:42]
A
I was. I was 19 when I auditioned. So I call it the Macchio curve. I played 16 for 47 years. It's my own little. My own little thing. But. So I was 19. I auditioned and I read the script, and I. I found it inspiring, though corny was my initial reaction. Some of the high school stuff I found corny. But the Miyagi character was written. And this is. I think this is. These are great points to make in this. In this setting, the Miyagi character was written. There was some humor peppered throughout, but he was, You know, this wise master. And you. I kind of. That's kind of what, you know, what he is. But it was probably a little less of what Pat Morita brought to it in his brilliant, brilliant performance as Mr. Miyagi. But that mentor, student, father, son relationship was just beautiful on the page. I went and I read for John Avilson, who had directed Rocky. Spent my childhood running up and down the library steps pretending to be Stallone at the time. And so I was. I was. You know, this was another. How is this happening to me? Experience. And it was my first reading with him where you could watch on YouTube. You honestly go to YouTube and watch Ralph Macchio and Pat Morita's first reading, and you can see my audition. And it's interesting. I didn't recall it at the time because when you're in it, you don't know it. But when I look back years later and even today, if I watch that audition right now, that's the kid. That's Daniel LaRusso. Like, it wasn't. It was. It didn't take, you know, months and months of work to find it. It was. It seemed like, you know, I was just meant to. I had the kind of east coast bravado that he had, but yet he was kind of a. You know, he thought he was a tough guy, but he wasn't, which is part of what makes him interesting. And then. And then that project, you know, just happened for me. They flew me out to California on an option deal, which is, you know. But it was. It wasn't until we found Mr. Miyagi that they were going to sign off. And Pat Morita, this is my favorite story and feels so right for this, this setting. Nobody wanted Arnold from Happy days as Mr. Miyagi, myself included on the onset, because I grew up Tuesday nights on abc. If you remember Laverne and Shirley, Happy Days, Mork and Mindy. I mean, this was our. You know. And I just remember Arnold is like, ba, ha, ha, Fonzie. We go, you know, and he's. And then I'm reading this. That's why I alluded to Miyagi being this, you know, this grounded, wise master of martial arts and philosophy. And philosophy. And I was just like, how is that guy gonna do this? And it's interesting, when I look forward, I went through my share of pigeonholing for a while of, you know, you kind of get boxed in. And I was at that time boxing in who Pat Morita was as an actor, because I only knew what I had seen. And when I walked in to John Avilson, the director, his office, I was in la, they had me out there, and Pat Morita was over there. And we had our scenes, and we had one scene, and we just started reading it. And John was just videotaping this as soon as he started speaking. Like all of Arnold from Happy Days, like, I didn't even know that was the same actor. And he had these beats and these comedic rhythms, but yet this earnest kind of what you want when someone is teaching you to connect. He had such a connection. And I just listened and reacted, and it was a tango to the perfect. To the perfect music. And from. From Jump street, like, there was no finding it. It was just there. And I still think if you put you Play a scene from that movie. It's still there. And it doesn't happen very often, but that kind of marriage and connection of those two characters, as you alluded to before, is quite inspiring and just a privilege to be a piece of that puzzle.
- [17:32]
B
Amazing. Well, it's here for Ralph Macchio and. Yes. So what I love to do for a moment is just play a quick clip and see your reaction to it. Is that cool?
- [17:45]
A
Yep.
- [17:45]
B
Okay. Ting. Ready? Yeah. So we're going to look right back here. So it's going to be. This is going to. Yeah, you'll see. I think. I think you're familiar.
- [18:00]
A
Depend on what?
- [18:03]
B
Reason.
- [18:05]
A
How's revenge? Karate for defense only. That's not what these guys are taught.
- [18:12]
B
Right?
- [18:13]
A
I can see no such thing. Bad student, only bad teacher. Teacher said, student do. Could you go with me? You know I can.
- [18:28]
B
Why?
- [18:28]
A
You said it was a good idea. Right? For you, good idea. For me, good idea. No, get involved. Oh, but you already are involved. I mean, what, I gotta carry you away, too? Thanks. Don't do me any more favors, okay, pal? Daniel Son.
- [18:44]
B
What? Okay.
- [18:50]
A
There you go. Oh, excellent.
- [18:54]
B
Excellent.
- [18:55]
A
Mr. Miyagi.
- [18:55]
B
This is great.
- [18:56]
A
Miyagi. Miyagi. Okay.
- [19:04]
B
So like many of you, please help. Yes, I will. And let's see how it goes from there. Coming back. So what does that bring forward for you, if anything?
- [19:17]
A
Well, instinctively, I have two things to. Well, two things to start to share about that scene. One, What does he say? No get involved. And everyone laughed. That on the page, is not necessarily funny, but with the textures that Pat Morita had in that character and the through line of connective tissue, he had that humor, raised the bar. And obviously, jcpenney398. What kind of bell do you have? It's, you know, but also this. That scene was. There was a few scenes in that movie and it's not done as much anymore because we've. We've just been just thrown into the tick tock generation where everything's cuts, cuts, cuts, cuts, cuts. But that entire scene from the moment LaRusso wakes up and realizes he helped him out and saved him from the skeletons all the way up to JCPenney. 398 is one shot, one continuous. And. And we spent a while on it. It was just. And that was one of the scenes. It might. It might have been. This might have been the scene. The first scene I read with him when I auditioned, when I was saying that when we. We read together. But that, you know, that's the setup set up to the Perfect payoff, You know, the doing the chores and then being karate skills. The. The student, the aggressive student, wanting that. Wanting the answers before asking the questions, you know?
- [20:47]
B
Yes.
- [20:48]
A
So perhaps bullies, Daniel Sans in the audience.
- [20:51]
B
Yes.
- [20:52]
A
Yes.
- [20:52]
B
If you are a Daniel Son, say yes. Tink. Let's say.
- [20:57]
A
Or say yes, Sensei.
- [20:58]
B
Yes. Yes, Sensei. Yes. And you are now sensei. We'll get that in a moment and beyond. But this may be more about them even than it is about you or all of us. Coming up in the next. We got a tank. Here we go.
- [21:17]
A
For four days, I've been busting my ass. I haven't learned a goddamn thing. You learn plenty. I learned plenty. I learned how to sand your decks, maybe. I watch your car, paint your house, paint your fence. I learned plenty.
- [21:26]
B
Right?
- [21:26]
A
Not everything is the same. Oh, bullshit. I'm going home, man. Daniel Son. Daniel Son.
- [21:34]
B
What?
- [21:34]
A
Come here.
- [21:36]
B
Now show me wax on, wax off.
- [21:41]
A
Wax on, wax off. Wax on, wax off.
- [21:44]
B
Hey, wax on, wax off.
- [21:46]
A
At. Concentrate. Look, my eye.
- [21:50]
B
Lock a hand.
- [21:51]
A
Thumb instead.
- [21:52]
B
Wax on hat. Wax off.
- [21:55]
A
Act. Show me pent offense.
- [21:58]
B
Up, down the line.
- [22:02]
A
Up. Done. Up.
- [22:06]
B
Done.
- [22:07]
A
Other side. Of floor.
- [22:15]
B
Catch. Reach. Charisma. And if you wax on, wax off the next two days, you can do that. Yes. So if I could ask, how do you feel about watching the clips, like, being present to it? Is it like, yeah, been there, done that 9 million times. Is it, yeah, I'll say something about it for the audience. Does it still resonate for you, like, what's present for you when you see those moments?
- [22:55]
A
When I watch that, I remember. I mean, obviously there's a. There's such a warmth of nostalgia, certainly. And I remember the day like I remember, you know, I see the green paint that they put on my face. I remember. I remember putting, you know, John saying, I want him to look like he's been painting all day. And we were, you know, So I go into things that you're not thinking about besides just, you know, the emotional part of the scene. I start thinking, you know, it's that bittersweet because Pat is no longer here. John Avils is no longer here. So a lot of the creators that made this magic are no longer with us. So there's a nostalgia embrace for me. But there's also. I remember how often we rehearsed that scene. Every scene we shot up until that point. That was probably about two thirds of the way through the filming of the movie. And anytime we were sitting around, John Avilson would say, well, work on the scene. The payoff. We need the payoff scene. You need the payoff scene. You know, that's got. It can't be fast enough, it can't be quick enough, it can't be sharp enough. And as witness to even the first time I saw this movie, that was the first. That was when the world was like, we are so into this story because we've been taken on this ride. And everyone was feeling that sense of accomplishment through the kids, through LaRusso's recognition. The message is, Robert Mark Kamen, I need to mention his name. He wrote this screenplay and he's still with us. And he will. If he was here right now, he'd say, how come you haven't mentioned my name a few more times? We have that sort of give and take between the two of us. And, you know, a lot of credit. You know, it's in the writing, it's in the execution, certainly in the casting and the visuals and all that. But the foundation. And if you're, you know, you tell me of how much you use these pieces, one of these days you should, you know, connect with him as well, because he would, you know, that's where that it came from. And for him, it came from a personal experience. He was picked on as a kid and he had a master Okinawan, his own Miyagi, and that's where that story came from. So when I see, when I watch that scene and I see that father, son, that mentor student, that, that Ian and Yang, give and take, where both grow. And that's the beauty of that film is Miyagi gains as much in his life as Daniel does from each other. So it's a two way street of inspiration. It's really quite beautiful.
- [25:38]
B
Amen. Let's hear for that.
- [25:41]
A
So.
- [25:44]
B
Maybe let's jump forward a bit and we'll come back to something maybe towards the end of our time together. But so this happens. When did you realize the, the impact or how transformational was the Karate Kid for your life? And when did you become present to if that transformation occurred to it and what it was going to mean forever?
- [26:09]
A
Yeah, that's. I mean, it happened in phases. I mean, as early as the exit of the first sneak preview of that movie, which is the first time I had seen it. That's the introduction and waxing on book is all about my experience seeing that movie the first time, not having seen anything and seeing it with an audience of about you know, about 6, 700 people in New York City. And I walked in that theater, you know, kind of the average Kid that maybe two or three people said, hey, I think I saw you in the Outsider. It's really cool. And I came out of that movie like I won the super bowl, the Stanley cup, and the World Series. You know, I had to be ushered to the car, and everyone on the street was doing the crane pose. And the producer, Jerry Weintraub, he turned to me, he goes, listen, we're gonna be making a couple of these. That night. He said it, and I couldn't process any of that. I just think I just knew I was in something special. People were, you know, jumping, hugging, high fiving. You don't see that too often anymore in a movie theater. First of all, you don't see anyone in a movie theater because everyone's on their phone. But. So it was. So that was the onset, and then it snowballed from there.
- [27:27]
B
But it was question. If you saw the Karate Kid and all of a sudden wanted to take up karate and be the Karate Kid, say, yes, yes, thank you.
- [27:37]
A
I know. Or open a bonsai kiosk at a mall. I always say, why didn't I come up the bonsai tree kiosk? It's. It's amazing. It's amazing. What. And. But it. Then it became pop culture. That's what started to happen, you know, and obviously it was sequel. So there was part two is in 86 and. And part three, which is, you know, not my favorite of. Of all the Karate Kids, though people. It gave Cobra Kai such. Such seeds to grow more fruit. It's amazing.
- [28:14]
B
Even the.
- [28:14]
A
Even the shortcomings in the Karate Kid trajectory bear fruit in the end. It's really quite. Quite unique and amazing. But I think what started happening. And interestingly, I think a lot of the writers that grew up on that movie that would write sitcoms and movies would reference the movie. This is years later. So maybe 10 years after it started to be popping up on every. You know, talk shows, sitcoms, late night. Then there was the Comic Con. Started getting really popular. People would be dressing up in the shower costume of the skeletons. And it started to become. Then there a theory where Johnny Lawrence might have been the good guy and LaRusso was the bully, which is how sort of onslaught of Cobra Khan.
- [29:09]
B
How does that land with me?
- [29:12]
A
Yes, initially it was like, wtf, man? No way. Messing with Miyagi do. Initially, that's how I was. And I took it because that character's become such a part of me, and not only from a part of me, but a part of how people view me. They feel like, this was a kid they grew up with. Daniel LaRusso had no business winning anything. And that's the beauty of that character, because he's a piece of all of us. You know, it wasn't like he was a ninja on page two. He had to discover and learn and be the novice and be given these gifts of knowledge and legacy and pay that forward.
- [29:57]
B
And that's, you know, this is not. I mean, we don't know each other obviously very well at all. But that's what these folks are doing here. These are lawyers, accountants, financial service providers, doctors, holistic healthcare providers, real estate professionals. These are people who are training. And we talk about the deep practice. We use the framework of the Karate Kid all the time in terms of deep practice, the rise of their influence, what they do with it, how they emotionally get themselves to use it. We have deep practice every morning, 8am that people in these programs come into to increase their influence and their integrity, how they Cause. Yes. And again, it's this journey of the Karate Kid is what these folks are literally experiencing. And if you feel that way about what you're doing here, say us. Yes. So, please.
- [30:42]
A
It's amazing. Amazing. It's. I mean, that's. That's kind of the evolution of what it was like for me and certainly the whole. The whole Johnny's the Real Karate Kid videos that came out about that How I Met yout Mother, the Barney Stinson say, and we actually did an episode of How I Met yout Mother. William Zapka, who is awesome as Johnny Lawrence both in the movie, and Cobra Kai, got a shout out to him. But we. It became like this groundswell of a discussion. And then I looked at that instead of saying, oh, wait, they're not seeing it the right way. To me, it was like, this is 20 years later and these people are still arguing about the theories of this movie. That's probably. That means we have a real footprint in society, in the world, in a good way. So it became, you know, it had. Cobra Kai was just another angle into that universe. And in the end, if you've watched that entire series, it kind of lands like a really good Karate Kid movie. It's just that there's, you know, everyone got to wear a different. A different jacket here or there, you know?
- [31:57]
B
Amen. If you've seen the Cobra Kai, say yes. Yeah, like incredible, right? Like incredible. Imagine. Imagine your work just walking into, like, any random room in the world, and, like, half the people plus have seen the things that you do. Like, how many people in here have never seen Ralph Macchio ever on screen. If you have not ever seen him in anything ever before seeing him today, never ever raise your hands. How crazy is that?
- [32:27]
A
It's crazy.
- [32:28]
B
99.5 plus percent of people have seen your work. Like, how does that feel?
- [32:33]
A
That's insane. You've done that. It's like, I'm an exercise right now. It's really. It's overwhelming. It's hard to. It's hard to, you know, to put into words what that is. The good news is most thankfully are, you know, smile about it. It's like, you know, there could be the other side. Like, I've, you know, there are people that we've all seen a thousand times and wish we hadn't. I'm. I'm glad I've sustained some form of likability and inspiration throughout. So it's a privilege. I mean, I, you know, I don't take. I don't make light of. Of what I've brought to all this, but I. At times I feel like I stepped in something and it just bloomed like roses. I'm just trying to stick the landing and pay that legacy forward to the next generation. That's how I look at it.
- [33:29]
B
And thank you. And so you mentioned a few minutes ago that, you know, there was the. There was another side to the, like the rise, you said, after the wave. And what did you mean by that, please?
- [33:42]
A
Well, that was, you know, there were. I call those the lean years as far as from an acting career and what looks like success on paper. However, my wife and I, who've been married 38 years. Right there.
- [34:01]
B
Wow.
- [34:03]
A
Thank you. Had two children. My son is the youngest. He's gonna be 30 next week. It's insane to say this out loud.
- [34:11]
B
Let's hear from that.
- [34:12]
A
But. So a lot of my focus at that point was on my family and being a young dad and. But there was their challenges of, you know, the sort of their. When you look at, say you look at the timeline, it was a short amount of time. When you look at the Outsiders, 1983. I mean, there's other credits, but I'll name the ones that we know the most that were most successful. The Outsiders through the Karate Kid night. And my cousin Vinnie was about, you know, nine years time. And so by 92, my cousin Vinny was 92, 93, 94. Then everything just started to get quiet. As far as work for me as, as an actor for. In the mainstream one, I looked. I was not maturing into the leading man roles. As. As. As would be the, you know, the norm. Because I still looked, I still had a childlike energy, which I still try to have, which is beautiful.
- [35:21]
B
Infectious.
- [35:22]
A
Yes. And then you have it too. We both have it. Yes.
- [35:25]
B
Thank you.
- [35:25]
A
I said, they said, have you met Sean? I said, my only concern, they said, would you want some coffee? I said, no, if I have coffee between Sean and I, the room's gonna explode. In a good way. Thank you. So. So those, I would say, you know, from the mid-90s to the, you know, mid-2000s was, you know, smaller parts here and there. I started writing, I started directing some short films. I was trying to stay creative, but I might not have always been the most pleasant guy every day to be around because it was, you know, it was such, you know, a launch for me. You know, like I mentioned, from the bubble gum bubble Yum to outsiders to my. To Karate kids to my cousin Vinny, it was like, yes, yes, yes, yes. And then all of a sudden, kind of the bottom dropped out of in the mainstream for me. And it was challenging. I had my wife, who's amazing, and my family upbringing, who I slowly introduced you to at the onset as the kind of safety net and the foundation of who I was and am. And I think that's. And obviously my children as a part of. Of what, you know, kept me on my feet. I've always. I get asked so many actors, so many famous kids of the 80s or whatever got, you know, went down a dark path, whether it was, you know, whether it was drugs or things like that, why didn't that happen to me? And some of that is my own sensibilities. A decent amount is my upbringing. And it was interesting in California. I just wanted to be back in New York watching the Mets because they were good at that time, or the islanders that were winning Stanley Cups at that time. You got four in a row. Four in a row. That's it. Those are my guys. They got a game tonight. They got to get better. But one thing at a time. So I would always go back home, back to Long island in between projects. So I think that that was. I didn't. I always kept one foot in Hollywood and one foot out. And therein lies the balance for me and how I think I skirted those difficult times or that rabbit hole of getting sucked into when things are negative or not easy and it's not working for you. So I'd like to believe, you know, it's all those componen that led me to come out the other side. What happened in recent times with things happening, whether it was when I was on Dancing with the Stars and became really, you know, got a real groundswell of popularity during that or some other roles or projects I did. And then leading into Cobra Kai, that's what happened with Cobra Kai. And even the Jackie Chan, the Karate Kid Legends movie, just. That's. How many examples of that are there where a 40 year property all of a sudden became relevant for 10 year old kids who watch the show with their parents and their grandparents. And that's really unique and that's. I don't know, I don't know how that happened. So I gotta believe.
- [38:47]
B
But can I, can I, can I just like offer you a slight challenge on one thing? You're so incredibly humble and you're so. Just such a kind human. Like if you feel that resonance, say yes. And. But dude, like it's you. I mean, yes, it's the movie to carry all those things, but it's you. And people love you. Like, if you just like love Ralph Macchio, like, say yes. Yeah, dude. And she will kill me. She will kill me for saying this, right? I've been doing this a really long time. And you just met Ty's mom. She never comes to anything. This is my first wife. She's in the building because you're here. That's why she's here. So I'm going to thank you for that because I'm not bad at what I do too, but thank you. That's the power you have. Like, it's, it's so incredible, the influence that you have. And so, yeah, please, like Cobra Kai. Amazing, extraordinary, mind blowing. And how did it happen? What is that about for you?
- [39:47]
A
Well, I mean, first of all, thank you. Sometimes it takes these kind of scenarios for me to even get clarity in that way. Because when you're inside the bubble, you don't always see clearly, right? But Cobra Kai, the three creators of that show came and they had heard, and it was truthful, that I had no real desire to go back to play Daniel LaRusso again, partially. Cause I heard so many bad ideas over the years. Hey, you know what you should do? You know, especially in those lean years I'd be getting. Hey, buddy, I need. Listen, you gotta do this. You got a kid who's got a problem and then you're gonna give Miyagi to the kid and then you're gonna. And everyone had their idea. The funniest, the craziest idea was when someone pitched that Rocky Balboa and Daniel LaRusso would have two kids that would meet and both be in trouble and they would fight crime between Newark and Philadelphia. And what's funny about that is those are the movies they're making now, you know, because. But so. So I always said no. I said no for 30 years, mainly one. You know, I don't know where that magic was going to come again. I didn't have. Pat Morita, was no longer here. I don't know how you enter that world and not have Miyagi. So I was not. I did not have the tools to figure that out. But so these three writers who had been known for Harold and Kumar and Hot Tub Time Machine, those are the ones that are going to bring my legacy back. And they're all from Jersey. They are. They are, yeah. That's John Hurwitz, Hayden Slasberg and Josh Heald. Great guys. They. They created the Cobra Kai series and they knew more about the Karate Kid films than I did. They cared so much. And they. They convinced me it was not easy because they had Billy Zapka. He was in. The studio was in. And they were like, we gotta get Ralph. And Billy's like, yeah, good luck with that. And then they had to sit and tell me they were gonna make a show called Cobra Kai, and I was gonna be, like, a car salesman who is kind of an ass. So they had a big mountain to climb. And this is a great story because they. They.
- [42:18]
B
Had to go from hello? To what?
- [42:20]
A
Yeah, yeah, exactly.
- [42:21]
B
This is what.
- [42:21]
A
Yes, exactly. So they. They pitched me the concept, which they did not have me at hello, but I. But there was something about timing. Here's the thing, and this might, you know, be an interesting point.
- [42:34]
B
Please.
- [42:34]
A
I had just seen the movie Creed, the first movie, Creed, and. Which was quite a good film. And if it did one thing, it did many things, but if it did one thing, it. It proved that you could enter a certain universe from another perspective. And it seemed fresh and new. So here. How do you not make Rocky 7? You make Creed, which is about Apollo Creed's kid. And then you get into that Rocky Balboa world without making that same cookie cutter, you know, concept. So I'd seen that, and I saw how that worked. And they were pitching Cobra Kai, the Johnny Lawrence story, and had. That was the entrance, the entry point in. So everything was from a different prism. What was it like to be the kid that was kicked into the face as opposed to the kid who delivered that kick, you know? And then it was really. When they started talking about the kids, the Next Generation. If you remember the characters like Miguel and Robbie and Samantha, Johnny and Daniel's kids, and how. And how they would play in the story that I started to see the landscape and see where this could go, I still had no idea. I knew I was like, I was on the edge of the pool, and I had no idea if it was 82 degrees and warm or ice cold, but I knew I had to take the swim at that point. I just. I felt that they cared so much about the characters. Now, once I got into. Took a little bit longer than the promise to get LaRusso back to where I think he would have landed. But that's what kept the show up in the air, you know, figuring out the way that every character had a little good, little bad. Let's put it this way. Karate Kid's very black and white. You know, Miyagi, Daniel, good. Kreese, Johnny Lawrence, bad. Cobra Kai. There's a lot of gray areas with the characters, so that created more length of story and certainly for a series. And then it just hit at the right time. And every time it came out, each season, there was another pandemic surge, and everybody was home, and it was the only thing to watch. And it was amazing. It was amazing.
- [44:53]
B
Let's hear for that. And. But in that. Right, so. But in that, doesn't, you know, Mr. Miyagi kind of cracks the door right. For that in the Karate Kid when he says in that clip, we watched no bad student, only bad teacher. Exactly, right. And then they end up as the true villains of the movie. And what I thought was so, like, it was mind blowing how they brought, like, all the characters from. From 1, 2, and 3 in that. And, you know. Yeah. Like, what would you say, from your perspective, Ralph, is the. Is the legacy of Cobra Kai? I mean, only because then you now have the Karate Kid, legends and Jackie Chan. So where does it all sit in your heart? How do you look back now at Cobra Kai and Legends, and where does it all go from here?
- [45:40]
A
Well, I think that, you know. Yeah, no such thing as bad student, only bad teacher. It's, you know, and it's interesting because you think of Johnny Lawrence's character and Daniel LaRusso's character, these two, that's what they did a beautiful job with. They said it. And if either one of them, if Johnny Lawrence had Miyagi and Daniel Russo had John Kreese, where would those paths go? I mean, they were two kids in need of mentorship, and we always stayed true to that in the storytelling but the one thing I said to John, Josh and Hayden, the Cobra Kai creators, on the day they pitched before I jumped in, is I said, I just need to have the thread of Miyagi throughout this series. I said, if that disappears, then I'm making a mistake, because I don't want Daniel LaRusso's story. Even when he falls, skins his knees, acts like a jerk, whatever, you know, we need. You need conflict for story. I need those elements because that's where the magic happened, you know? Yeah, it's fun. Get him a body bag, sweep the leg, all those funny things. But the heart and soul and the genuine human elements that work from that initial story was always important to me to thread throughout. And the same thing with Karate Kid Legends, which was very much a studio coming up with, hey, how could we get Jackie Chan and Ralph Macchio and do this again? And. And I just. It was the same. Same note I had. As long as I can share a piece of that legacy and the story that what was the magic that started it all, then I could feel that I don't undercut the integrity of the character, the story, or this universe. And that's always been super important to me. And I think it. I think it's proven itself. I mean, selfishly on one hand, but I think it's proven itself. It keeps the show and all these episodes, whether the motion pictures or the series, grounded in a way. And so going forward, it's, you know, I think there was, you know, I think it was time to land the Cobra Kai plane. It definitely felt like it was time. I always joke, I said, it's amazing. I probably would have moved from the Valley and taken up a different sport. It. After six seasons, you know, Ralph's sensibilities was like, I'm tired of getting my ass kicked. Let me try. Let me try softball. But it makes for better entertainment. I think that I never say. Never, like, say, are you going to do any more? Are you going to continue? It's. There's a. There's. It needs. It needs a little, you know, I don't want to say there's Karate Kid fatigue, because there's so many lessons you could still mine from that. That story and these characters. But I also don't want to overstay the welcome. It's about, like I say, paying the legacy forward. If there's a piece that is genuinely authentic that you could make fresh, then I'm open. I'm open to it. But, man, it's been one hell of a ride. And just to hear your story and what you're. And how you use these pieces in the work that you guys are all doing is. I mean, this is the gift that keeps on giving, just even sitting here.
- [49:09]
B
Thank you, Rafa, and thank you. So we talk about heart and integrity, and you just embody it. Just feeling and hearing how Ralph Macchio is speaking of Pat Morita, Mr. Miyagi, and just this abiding loyalty. Decade after decade, tears are welling up for me because that's just who you are. And I think. Think, you know, we talk about influence and how what a heroic characteristic. Heart, integrity, are like, you just embody it.
- [49:42]
A
And.
- [49:42]
B
And there's no manufacturing. You're just so authentically who you are. And I think that's at least a core part of why you're as beloved as you are. And if you guys. That resonates. Yes. Yeah.
- [49:55]
A
Yeah. So thank you. And.
- [49:58]
B
And you love the Mets, and you're loyal to the Mets. And, Tink, if we could throw out the picture from my dad for a minute, I'd love to just show Ralph that for a quick sec. My dad's 80th birthday just passed as a quick Met fan to Met fan footnote, and he's in the hospital. So we brought Dwight good. And Mookie Wilson, thanks to Darren Prince, to see him in the hospital just a week ago. And he and I were in box 113A in the front row behind first base. In 1986 when the ball rolled through Bill Buckner's.
- [50:26]
A
I was there. I was at that game.
- [50:27]
B
Where were you?
- [50:28]
A
Oh, I swear to God.
- [50:29]
B
Where were you sitting?
- [50:30]
A
I was sitting just behind the first base. I remember seeing Buckner's heel and seeing white behind that heel, and that's all I remember. I saw that ball roll through, and my wife and I were there, freezing.
- [50:43]
B
Were you in the lower level up.
- [50:44]
A
Or up in the lower. In the. In the orange seats that Chase.
- [50:48]
B
Yes.
- [50:48]
A
Yes, dude.
- [50:50]
B
I was sitting literally 25ft from Bill Buckner in the front row behind first base, right where the dirt and the grass met. That we were, like, in the same.
- [50:59]
A
Part of shaping the same uniform. Why did it take you so long to call me?
- [51:05]
B
I don't know. That's crazy, dude. That is absolutely amazing. That is amazing. All right, we're gonna digress for, like, an hour, but not. They gotta re sign Peter Lanza. All right, we'll stop there.
- [51:17]
A
But.
- [51:17]
B
We'll stop there.
- [51:18]
A
Yes, but there's Dwight and Mookie.
- [51:22]
B
Dwight and Mookie. My dad and myself.
- [51:24]
A
God bless, man.
- [51:25]
B
Yes. This is like a week ago. You just got out of the hospital, too. Thank you for all your prayers, by the way. My dad's out hospital now. Yeah, thank you. 80th birthday in the hospital and he's out. Yep. So if you had it all your way, kind of a two part question, you know, it's a hundred years from now. I ask everybody this question, not just folks on the stage. This is people all over the space of certain elite. You know, it's 100 years from today. It's your final day. You have the blessing and privilege of knowing it is like from this day to that, what's there still that you'd like to accomplish? And I mean, like maybe taking up table tennis or chess, you know, maybe making 10 more movies, like whatever it is. And then when you're there, what is it that you'd like to be looking back on that, you know, your heart, your soul that you brought to this planet? Please.
- [52:15]
A
Oh, so the light. Easy question. Yes.
- [52:17]
B
Yeah, yeah, yeah.
- [52:19]
A
I thought I was getting out easy. No, that's a great question and not one that I've given a tremendous amount of thought to. But I think I always, I feel I always need to be creative in some way because it drives me and I think, I mean, there's something about. I got to direct an episode of Cobra Kai the final season, and I loved working with those young actors, you know, you know, the older actors as well. But I really enjoyed working with the younger actors and them listening to me and me believing how much they were, they were taking in. And so I got such a charge and a joy out of creating with them and caring about them as well. So that's something I like to see myself do more behind the camera and storytelling, figuring out ways, you know, of telling stories the way I grew up with them, but yet still sort of like what Cobra Kai did. Embracing the nostalgia but being relevant at the same time. Which is a challenge when you're competing with everyone's phones and short content. But I'd like to take some. I like to cook, but I've never. There's more, there's more there I need to tap into. I enjoy a nice glass of wine here and there, there. So I mean, I think I'd like to get. Get better at enjoying time, cooking and just stopping and smelling the roses, if you will. I mean, it feels. Everything's just, you know, go, go, go, go, go. And I want to. My wife and I talk about it now is when we look at this chapter I'll say it out loud. I'll be 64 in November.
- [54:18]
B
That's incredible.
- [54:19]
A
That stays in this room. Okay.
- [54:23]
B
And listen, I can see, you know, you feel. You feel like you're late 20s. Like, you feel that way. Like, you know, and I feel people. And I don't say things to just be kind. I say because it's true. Your energy is just so infectious and youthful, and I really acknowledge that.
- [54:42]
A
Thank you. Thank you so much. I blame my parents. It's their fault. But I, you know, I look at it now at my life and what I've been able to. To accomplish and the blessings that I have and the work that I put into it and not taking anything away from who I am and that, you know, you put good out there. Maybe good comes back. So I'd like to believe that that's. That has been true for me. But I think of 20 years. I think 20 years back, and it feels like last Tuesday. So I'm having these conversations with my wife. I think 20 years forward, and I'm saying, okay, what is this chapter? What you say a hundred years from now, but in the same. To the same point is what I want to enjoy. I want to enjoy time with the people I love. Of course I want to. I want to stop and take something in that. Normally, I have to rush past because life gets in the way. And obviously, some folks don't have the. The luxury of that or being comfortable enough for that. But, you know, when I mentioned cooking, which just popped into my head, it's just. There have been times where I'll just make my, you know, Ralph shrimp, where I take it in a little cayenne and mix it up with the garlic. And it's making that noise in the back, big walk, and I'm getting excited. Linguine's boiling, and I'm gonna make the most delicious pasta. And I have the time to do that. I'm happy, and it feels great, and I love to share that. So it's like stopping for those moments, being creative, taking, like, when I mentioned directing the kids on the show, taking what I've learned from the great Pat Morito or the Francis Ford Coppola or Walter Hill, John Avilson, filmmakers and actors I've worked with, Anthony Hopkins, someone I worked with only one day, and he had such a profound effect on me. I want. I remember those things that I felt I learned from him. I would love to hand that. So it's paying that legacy forward, taking a piece of the wisdom that I've Learned that, I feel has shaped maybe the positive that I am, and giving that to the next generation who is dealing with a world that is not always so positive and often is angry and hatred is a big part of the day. And I like being the, you know, the elixir to that, if I. If I can. Wow.
- [57:14]
B
That is a powerful, beautiful thing. So, as we begin to draw to a close, would it be okay? I'm sure a lot of folks would appreciate one more clip and then just feeling how that feels for you. Would that be okay?
- [57:26]
A
Good.
- [57:26]
B
Yeah. Okay, Tink. Show you. Okay.
- [57:46]
A
Can you go on body bag?
- [57:50]
B
Yeah. All right.
- [57:52]
A
Be warning for legal contact. Knees. Finish him.
- [58:39]
B
So how. How does that feel?
- [58:40]
A
It feels great. First thing I'm gonna say, I. I got the. The chills and the things I'm in. It. It's, like, crazy, but it's. It's. You know, it's just a. It's. Listen, it's a. It's just a beautiful payoff in the story and all that stuff, and the crane with no can do, you know, if you could do it, it's. It's going to work every time where it really doesn't work. But that's just between. I tried it. It's a little bit. Yeah, it's. You know, it's. It's cinema magic, certainly. It's Bill Conti's music. It's everything coming together. You know, it's. It's hard to even put into words, you know, when I've seen it, I can. It kind of never gets old.
- [59:27]
B
You.
- [59:27]
A
Know, I don't watch it daily, so it's been a few minutes. But seeing it again and feeling all you guys, you know, what it meant to you when you were in the theater or when you watched it with your kids, it's, you know, it's quite unique, and it's really inspiring to me to be connected to that. You know, you don't always want to talk about yesterday in life. You want to talk about tomorrow and what you could be doing because you get lost in its nostalgia. And if not that, I'm guilty of it. I have no choice. Everybody I meet wants to talk about 1984, right? Cobra Kai helped with that a little bit, but. But I don't look that as a negative. You know, I get asked that question. You know, a lot of actors don't want to talk about their most famous thing, or they'll say, I'll come on Sean's, you know, Fireside Chat, but don't ask me about that. Let's talk about other stuff. To me, the karate kid, Daniel LaRusso, since it's so on point with this, in this sett today, is that character is bigger than. And that story and what's happened is bigger than the actor who played the part, bigger than anyone in that movie. It's become a piece of everybody's childhood or life or inspiration, in a way. I just watch the end of that, and I'm saying, where are these movies now? You know, I want one of these now, you know.
- [60:54]
B
And you're. And to not miss the magic. I didn't tell them to clap. Like, these people just reflexively were in the moment clapping when that happened. And this is not a moment of nostalgia for much of the people, many of the people in this room. This is a living embodiment of the journey they're going through. And every time we watch this, and it's not purely inspirational, it's everything that Daniel LaRusso, Mr. Miyagi, yourself, Pat Morita, the movie, all the people involved that you so beautifully acknowledged and mentioned generously, integrously and abundantly. It's the story of deep practice. It's the story of transformation. It's a story of possibility. And while, yes, it's a fictional tale, it's the truth of every hero's journey is we lose ourself. We find ourselves through this progression of finding the guidelines and then going through the trials and the guide, painting this picture for us of what we need to do. We want it, we're desperate for it. Then we find it, and they're like, four days, I'm your goddamn slave, man. Like, I'm out of here. And it's like, da, da, da, da, da, walked the hand and, you know, blah, blah, blah. And all of a sudden, this magical transformation at stage one is present, and the journey continues until you have this moment, and then the beauty moves. And I'll just say this from my heart. I'm certainly not speaking for anybody else here. I love the Karate Kid 2 and 3 because I'm not a critic, and I didn't watch the movies to be like, well, which movie's better? And is it just a repeat and a recycle? It's characters I love finding new stress and new challenge. You know, The Karate Kid 2, you're there for Mr. Miyagi, right? You're there taking that trip. You're there, you're risking yourselves. And the third one, another challenge, you get annoyed he doesn't go with you and tell you what you want. To hear. So we have another fall away in the hero's journey, and you lose yourself and you find yourself, and it's beautiful and spectacular. And I don't read what critics say, and I could care less. I'm not a movie critic. I'm a person that loves the characters, the story, and you and everything you brought forward. It is such a powerful inspiration and magical for you to be here. And just quick footnote. How do you not punch Johnny Lawrence in the face when at the end he goes, hey, you're not. So you're okay, LaRusso. Every time he says that in the movie, I want to see you, like, just punch him in the face. Like, I'm okay.
- [63:23]
A
I just kicked your ass.
- [63:24]
B
You bullied me in all these ways, which is also you and Daniel, because you're like.
- [63:30]
A
Like, thanks. Yeah.
- [63:32]
B
It's just so pure like that. Like, that's the least that he could possibly have said to you after everything he did. And you just receive it so perfectly, graciously. Like, who doesn't wish and dream we could be that in the face of all the crap we take from the forces of darkness? And then just to receive it so graciously and humbly. And I think that's an easily overlooked moment. And people can even say it's not real. And they could have made him not say that or something. I think it's even more magically beautiful in the end. And final. Final. I believe that these dynamics of the films that, like, what if Johnny Lawrence is just something we all have to face? And what if that Johnny Lawrence is actually inside of us and our fear? So there's. And you go, like, never thought of that. The directors never thought of that. But that's the beauty of what you created, you all created, is it leaves us with this endless hero's journey, this mythology, this legend that lives on not only nostalgically, but so presently for so many people in the world and the people in this room. And final. Final. Is there anything you'd want this group to know going out of here, from how you make your pasta to, like, what's on your heart. If you had, like, one final message for these Amazing humans, please, Mr. Ralph Macchiat, what would it be?
- [64:58]
A
Wow. You know, from my perspective, I know ad nauseam said paying Legacy forward, but it's finding those moments in your life, at least for me and some of them, the clarity doesn't happen till later. It happens at a surprising time. Even things that I learned from my own kids that I look back and See a small moment that I received something positive from them, but in the moment, I didn't see it. And then later it becomes clear. I know I'm kind of tap dancing a little bit here as far as defining what I'm trying to say, but it's finding those moments in your life that are sometimes the quieter moments and not the loud moments, sometimes where the noise, the signal is clearer than all the noise, and finding the human side of that and paying that forward in some way. That's what I look forward to every day, is finding those little pieces of something in my life that it's not always the loudest that I can take. I'm trying to find a specific example. I remember my daughter saying to me, I think she was. She was going through. She had her own. Some bullying going on with her in school. This is back, you know, middle school time, when it's the toughest and I didn't see it. And you would think, who should be able to see this more than the Karate Kid guy? It was more covert bullying, less like, you know, take your lunch money, push into the wall. It was, you know, she was being teamed up on by some in her circle. And I didn't see it, and my wife saw it before I did, and I didn't. And I might have. I wouldn't say downplayed it, but it was not on the front burner for me. And then years later, interestingly, I was doing a scene in a small television movie that was that connected to that same moment with the daughter. And it was just this realization of clarity, of I saw clearer what I couldn't see as the dad on the day. And I had that moment with my daughter, and I spoke to her about it years later because I. And I. It wasn't just. I just. I'm not saying I just apologized for it. It was just we had the conversation I wished I had at the time. But going forward, I used. When I was working on cobr. Cobra Kai. Sorry about the rambling, but I'm getting to the point. When I was working with the girl, Mary Mauser, wonderful actress who plays my daughter Samantha, and we were dealing with the same subject matter. I told her about my story with my daughter Julia. And when we played the scene decades later in Cobra Kai, there was a. There was a resonance from her perspective and mine that was of a next level. So it's finding those moments, even those missteps in your life, that you could gain clarity from later and then pay that forward. It feels good for. I won't say it was my parental fail, but it was not my brightest moment. And my daughter and I and Mary and they're very close friends, and it was kind of a wonderful connection. So sorry about the long road to that story, but I was finding it as I was explaining myself, I'm not sure.
- [68:56]
B
It is an honor. It is a privilege. And your legacy lives on everywhere and certainly powerfully resonates in this space. And not only yours, but that, of course, of Mr. Miyagi, Pat Morita, and all of those that were involved in the magic of the Karate Kid and the magic that you, Ralph Macchio, bring to the world. It has been an honor and a privilege, sir, and you're welcome back here anytime. Let's hear for Ralph Macchio.
- [69:24]
A
Thank you, everyone.
- [69:27]
B
Thank you. And may I. May I bow to you and thank you.