If you felt like Karate Kid: Legends gave Daniel LaRusso the ol’ “and featuring” treatment, you’re not alone. Fans noticed the legendary Ralph Macchio barely showed up in the new film, and now we know why: he was only on set for 10 days.
The revelation comes from none other than Martin Kove (who plays John Kreese in the Cobra Kai franchise) during a video interview from six months ago that’s suddenly making the rounds. Kove, ever the straight shooter, said: “Very few of us were privy to anything of what this movie is even about… Ralph, you know, went off for about 10 [days], did it, and that was it. None of us were invited to come and play.”
It all makes a lot of sense now.
Fans are very confused about what Karate Kid: Legends is even trying to be. Is it a Karate Kid movie? A Cobra Kai prequel? A spiritual reboot? It’s not quite any of those, and that’s kind of the problem.
The film does star LaRusso, eventually. He gets shoehorned into the third act. But outside of his appearance and that “secret” cameo by another legacy cast member, it doesn’t really connect to Cobra Kai in a big way.
And that’s Karate Kid: Legends‘ biggest downfall. Fans didn’t just want nostalgia. They wanted continuity. Would it have killed them to toss in a billboard of Robby and Tory pushing sports drinks? Or have Hawk and Demetri arguing over pizza toppings at Victor Lipani’s joint? Anything to make it feel like the Cobra Kai universe was alive and kicking.
Macchio himself has been playing franchise diplomat lately, doing the press rounds and not revealing too much. When asked about what’s next, he offered this very cryptic, very Macchio answer: “There are a few balls up in the air. You have to be diplomatically safe, and I don’t know which one is going to land. I hope all of them do, or some of them do, or one of them does.”
That’s basically the Hollywood version of a shrug.
Still, Karate Kid: Legends almost made things worse. The film was originally scheduled to drop before the final season of Cobra Kai, which would’ve completely thrown off the momentum and confused the timeline even more. Thankfully, Macchio fought back. “I was screaming constantly every day, ‘This movie has to come out after the show finishes,’” he told The Hollywood Reporter.
Is Karate Kid: Legends a must-watch? Not exactly. It’s more of a soft punch to the gut than a crane kick to the face. But maybe it’s what is needed to keep the dojo doors open for future stories where we get more than 10 days of shooting with Ralph Macchio.
It was a mess of a movie targeted at kids. I’m really surprised it’s at 90% on Rotten Tomatoes.