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<v ->From that earliest age,</v>

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anytime I would see a movie I would come home and I would,

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you know, act out my version of it.

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Yes, I pretended to be Rocky Balboa, okay.

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It's ironic I was in "The Karate Kid"

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made by the same filmmaker.

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Oh, I wanted to be a Michael Corleone,

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but a nice Michael Corleone, [laughs] not a criminal.

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So I think it's always been in my bones

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to perform, to create in that way.

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[upbeat instrumental music]

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Hi, this is Ralph Macchio,

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and this is the timeline of my career.

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<v ->Okay, here's what you gotta do.</v>

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Butch Academy is coming over here for the big dance.

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[bottle screeching]

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Hey pipe head, this is gonna take a lot of preparation

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so pay attention.

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<v ->This was 1979 and there was this film called</v>

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"Up the Academy" that was casting.

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And I had done a few commercials,

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but a couple of Bubble Yum commercials at the time,

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and this was one of the first movie auditions.

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And I went in to New York City and I met with the director

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whose name was Robert Downey Sr.

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When I did my audition,

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he just kept giving me more improvisational F bombs to drop.

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I think he liked my sort of New York kinda young energy,

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and the fact that I was 17 at the time,

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I probably looked 12,

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and I guess the repetitive F bombs coming out of my mouth

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just had him laughing louder and louder.

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So I pretty much got the audition saying a lot of F bombs

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and being a tough New Yorker.

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<v ->No shit.</v>

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<v ->It was a crazy time because you know '70s cinema</v>

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and those directors and that time,

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there was a decent amount of drugs in the world

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and on the sets,

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and "Up the Academy" had its share of that

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in the behind the scenes moments.

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And I had no clue what was going on.

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I was as green as they come.

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I squeaked when I walked, that's how clean I was.

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[upbeat instrumental music]

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<v ->They sure are pretty, aren't they?</v>

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<v ->Yeah, they are.</v>

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<v ->I'm really glad I came.</v>

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<v ->Oh yeah, me too.</v>

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Sorry the party's such a drag,

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it's just that the Bradford's know a lot of old people.

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<v ->I don't mind.</v>

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<v ->ABC was doing a talent search in New York</v>

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I guess looking for young faces

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to plug into their established series.

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And I got lucky enough to be one that was chosen

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and plucked from New York and plugged into

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"Eight is Enough" at the time.

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And apparently they didn't think eight was enough,

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but I fortunately got to do 21 episodes that season.

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It was the final season so I always say

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I might've been nine was too many.

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It was a great training ground for me

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to week in and week out be part of this ensemble

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and learn from all these experienced actors

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and sort of be out on my own in Los Angeles at the time.

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I mean I got the parts before I kinda knew what I was doing.

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I mean I think I gotta give myself enough credit

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that I knew enough of what I was doing.

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So I dove deeper into the craft and studied acting

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after "Eight is Enough" and right before "The Outsiders."

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[upbeat instrumental music]

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<v ->Things would go a lot better if Socials stayed</v>

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on the south side of town.

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<v ->Yeah well, don't you worry about that, Johnny</v>

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because we're going to have it out

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with them sooner or later.

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<v ->"The Outsiders" was a book I read in seventh grade</v>

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when I was 12 years old.

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It was the first book I ever read without my parents

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or teacher telling me to read.

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I always had a great affinity for Johnny Cade,

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maybe because his description was close to how I looked

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and maybe because he was the sort of runt of the group

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and I was kind of the smallest guy in my class.

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So when I heard they were making the film, now I was saying,

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"I gotta get in.

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"I have to have the opportunity."

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So on the day that I did get the opportunity to audition

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for Francis Ford Coppola, who directed that film,

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who directed, you know, "The Godfather" and "Apocalypse",

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films that I've seen 25 to 40 times before then.

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This was all beyond the dream come true opportunity for me,

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and I remember Frances would mix and match actors

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all in one room together

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as he was looking for the chemistry and the ensemble.

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And anytime he picked me to read anything but Johnny,

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I was like, "Oh man, this is a disaster.

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"I have to get that part."

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I was so specifically driven to get that part.

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And as luck would have it, or fate, or destiny, or whatever,

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I got to play the role, a dream come true role for me

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in a film that is, you know, has a pretty good cast.

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Couple of guys.

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I run into these guys over the years and we have,

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whether it's Matt Dillon, Rob Lowe,

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or Emilio, or C. Thomas Howell,

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when we see each other there's a kindred spirit.

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You know, we all kind of started at the same,

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in the same place.

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Everyone wanted to be in that movie.

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It was, you know, the cool movie to get

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and we were all blessed to have that opportunity.

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And for me, it's like your first kiss.

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It's your first girlfriend, you know.

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You never forget that and that's "The Outsiders" for me.

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It holds a very special place.

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[coach chattering]
[audience cheering]

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<v ->Finish him.</v>

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No mercy, no mercy.

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Finish him.

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[crowd cheering]

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[dramatic instrumental music]

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<v ->"The Karate Kid" came to me as an audition</v>

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for John G. Avildsen, the director who had directed "Rocky",

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among other great films,

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and I remember hearing the title saying,

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"'The Karate Kid', this is a terrible title."

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And I read the script.

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Not that I wasn't to pursue,

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"The Outsiders" was just hitting at the time

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so things were starting to build as far as my recognition.

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It was the beginning of being taken seriously.

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But I went to John Avildsen's apartment

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on the Upper West Side and the whole way was all full

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of other people who kinda looked remotely like me

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or in that age range and waited my turn to go in.

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And I read with him one-on-one,

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and what's so interesting about that is that video

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you could see on YouTube of the first time I ever read

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for Daniel LaRusso,

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and it's interesting when I watched that

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because that character was happening there

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even before I knew he was being developed.

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I was cast early on and then it was all about

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who was going to play Mr. Miyagi.

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They were talking about Toshiro Mifune,

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the great Japanese actor who didn't speak any English

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so that would have been a challenge,

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but all of a sudden, Arnold from "Happy Days" shows up

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on videotape and Pat Morita

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and the studio did not want him.

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The producer did not want him.

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I was like, "Arnold from 'Happy Days'."

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You know, but John Avildsen was like, "I read him,"

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and he said, "I've read you and I'm putting you guys

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"in a room together."

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And we, Pat Morita and I got in a room together

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and just grabbed the pages, started reading.

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And it was effortless.

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The magic that happened on the screen

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happened the first day we picked up the pages.

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He had Miyagi in his skin, in his mind,

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in his consciousness and I, for whatever the reason,

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had the yin to that yang, the balance,

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literally the balance.

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Did I say it?

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Balance that was sort of the beginning of the magic,

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the cinema magic, that resonate to this day.

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And the filming of "The Karate Kid" was a lot of work.

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I mean I was in every scene of the thing

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and I didn't know how that's ever gonna work.

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I mean, it's me, you know.

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You have to reference that the filmmakers knew exactly

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what they were doing, but outside of that,

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there still needs to be some lightning in a bottle,

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some moons in proper alignment for something to stand

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the test of time like "The Karate Kid" has in cinema

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and also in pop culture.

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Looking back, I weathered the storm.

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It was a good storm and it still is.

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It still is.

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It's 36 years and climbing.

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[crowd chattering]

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<v ->I'm not gonna be able to break that.</v>

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The guy who just tried it was twice my size,

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he only got through two of them.

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What do you expect me to do?

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<v ->Focus.</v>

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<v ->Great, and what are you gonna do?</v>

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<v ->Pray.</v>

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<v ->So the point that we had an idea we were gonna be making</v>

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a "Karate Kid Part Two" happened pretty early.

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We came out of seeing a sneak preview of "The Karate Kid"

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and everybody out on sidewalk and the parking lot

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was doing the crane stance.

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They all were doing their version,

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whether they were a 10 year old kid or a 60 year old man,

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or, you know, it was, everybody was doing their version.

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And the producer Jerry Weintraub put his arm

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around my shoulder.

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He goes, "We're gonna be making a couple of these."

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That was before the movie ever came out in theaters.

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It's really amazing.

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It wasn't until it actually took off in the box office

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and it became a sleeper hit of that summer

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that we didn't get the option call

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that we're making a part two.

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It was such a smart idea to take the Okinawan culture,

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Japanese-Sumerian culture,

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and take Mr. Miyagi back to his homeland

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and then bring the kid, bring LaRusso there

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to experience that world.

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Pat Morita and I, I always describe our on-camera,

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off-camera as well, but our on-camera work

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as having a soulful magic to it.

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There was a great amount of mutual respect for each other.

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Our relationship wasn't necessarily mentor-student

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off camera, you know, 'cause he taught me how to eat sushi,

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but I taught him how to make pasta,

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you know what I'm talking about.

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It was a friendship.

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He's certainly missed but lucky for us

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we have the legacy of that great performance

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always and forever.

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[melancholy instrumental music]

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<v ->Vin, you graduated from law school six years ago.</v>

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What have you been doing since?

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<v ->Studying for the bar.</v>

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<v ->Six years?</v>

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<v ->Uh-huh.</v>

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<v ->Right before "My Cousin Vinny," well, a bit before that,</v>

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I was on Broadway with Robert De Niro

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in a play called "Cuba and his Teddy Bear"

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and Joe Pesci, I had met him 'cause he came to see the play

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with Scorsese and all those...

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It was just awesome for me as a young actor

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in New York on Broadway.

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And so then when "My Cousin Vinny" came up

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with Joe Pesci starring,

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and "Goodfellas" was out at the time, I think,

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or just ending its run,

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and I'd seen "Raging Bull" probably 70 times

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in the theater.

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Yes, I'm that guy. [chuckles]

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But "Vinny" came up and I was not, you know,

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okay, they need a guy, an Italian guy, college age,

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an Italian American from the East Coast

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to play Joe Pesci's cousin.

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The studio wasn't that into it.

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I think that at that point I had sort of fallen off

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the, I don't know if we wanna call it an A list,

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but I was not in the top five of what they were thinking.

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So it was a challenge to get that part.

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Being a part of "My Cousin Vinny" that's another one

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that has stood the test of time.

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It really is kind of always there, people reference it.

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The two yutes, you know.

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"I'm one of the two yutes and I did not shoot the clerk."

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And it was funny on the page and even funnier on the screen.

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A great script and I call it the late for dinner movie

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'cause if it's on, you're gonna be late for dinner

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because you just have to wait for that next scene.

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It's another one that I'm super proud to be a part of.

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[upbeat instrumental music]

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<v ->This is, uh, Bobby.</v>

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<v ->Hey Bobby, how are you?</v>

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<v ->Hey, how you doing?</v>

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<v ->Good.</v>

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[dramatic instrumental music]

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<v ->Bobby!</v>

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<v ->It's in retrospect that I had that sort of dry time</v>

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where I wasn't working as much in front of the camera.

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I think it wasn't completely by design,

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but as it's worked out, it couldn't have worked out better.

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I had so much time as a dad, a husband, and a father.

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And so when I looked at "Ugly Betty"

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that was like after the intermission, if you will.

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And it sort of came up, I auditioned.

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It was, I think, only supposed to be a two episode arc

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with a possibility of developing into a love interest

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for the Hilda character.

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Ana Ortiz played that role.

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And I auditioned, I got it.

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It was in New York so it was easy.

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It sorta got me back into it.

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And I really appreciated that opportunity.

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And I remember sending a note to the show runners

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of that show after I did my first episode saying

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that I believe there's room for this character to grow

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and I would love the opportunity.

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And so coming in having a two episode arc

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turned into 11 episodes,

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so it was really cool of them

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and gave me the opportunity to play

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that sort of young romantic lead,

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or maybe not so young, romantic lead.

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[door creaking]

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<v ->Police, don't move.</v>

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<v ->What the fuck is this?</v>
<v ->Police here.</v>

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<v ->Nobody told us.</v>

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Jesus Christ, you gotta be fucking kidding me.

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<v ->"The Deuce" I knew that the pilot was shot</v>

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and that they were doing the series

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and I knew who the cast was.

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This was early '70s, which I lived through.

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I lived through Times Square.

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I remember the smell, the look, the taste.

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New York in the '70s and Times Square in that time

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was a tough, tough area.

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And it was a small roll, a small corrupt cop that,

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you know, was kind of a dick

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and kind of, you know, a self-serving person

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who would take anyone to throw them under the bus

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to keep himself moving forward and up the ranks,

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and how he somehow never gets his comeuppance

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was a great opportunity.

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But I did not know that was the opportunity

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when I got the part.

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When I got the part, it was a one off,

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maybe two to three episodes, not unlike "Ugly Betty"

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but you know, fortunately for me,

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David Simon and George Pelecanos and the creative team

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and HBO let this guy stick around for 17 of the 25 episodes.

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I loved that show.

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I loved being a part of it.

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<v ->You, you still got those golden locks, eh.</v>

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God, this is crazy.

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How, how you been?

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<v ->Great, man, thanks.</v>

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I've been great.

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<v ->That's great.</v>

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Hey hey, Anoush, come here.

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<v ->"Cobra Kai" came to me via the creators</v>

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Jon, Josh, and Hayden.

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Jon and Hayden had written the "Harold and Kumar" franchise

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and Josh written the "Hot Tub Time Machine" franchise

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and I heard that these guys wanted to meet

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on a "Karate Kid" concept.

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They are the three biggest "Karate Kid" fans

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you will ever find.

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So that was number one.

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Number two is they found an angle into the universe

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from a different perspective,

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and they wanted to dive into the gray areas

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of these characters.

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And that's what the big hook was for me.

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"Karate Kid" was very black and white,

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good over evil, Daniel-san good, Johnny Lawrence bad,

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Miyagi good, Kreese bad.

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"Cobra Kai" each episode your allegiance may change

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on who you're rooting for and why.

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Diving into those areas and then always paying homage

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to the film, the nostalgia of what "The Karate Kid"

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has become in pop culture and in cinema was super important,

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but no less important than making the story fresh

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for this generation.

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And that's what these guys convinced me we can do.

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And fortunately, you know, "Karate Kid" is just one

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of those that was blessed back in 1984.

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And here we are, it's blessed all over again.

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It's fan service, but it's relevant storytelling

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and that's pretty spectacular.

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[upbeat instrumental music]

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I still enjoy learning 'cause when you say you know, it all,

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you're lying to yourself.

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But I enjoy the character and building a character

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from the foundation up.

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You know, how he walks, how he talks, how he reacts,

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and the specialties of whether it's playing guitar in a film

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or martial arts.

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You know, you get to experience a life

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through another person, a piece of you.

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And that's really quite incredible.

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[upbeat instrumental music]