Though she would eventually return to the fold, Ralph Macchio shares his regret about Elisabeth Shue .’s original The karate kid franchise exit. Macchio starred in the original 1984 film as Daniel LaRusso, a New Jersey teenager who moves to Reseda, California with his mother and struggles to adjust to his new environment, including the upper-class bullies at his high school. . Hoping to defend himself and beat the bullies at their own game, Daniel learns karate from his eccentric handyman, Mr. Miyagi.
Part of Daniel’s journey in the original The karate kid movie was his relationship with Elisabeth Shue’s Ali Mills, the ex-girlfriend of the film’s antagonist, William Zabka’s Johnny Lawrence. Despite the film ending with Daniel and Ali in an official relationship, the star would be absent from subsequent sequels, with brief dialogue explaining that the two were at some point between the events of The karate kid and The Karate Kid Part II. Shue would later reprise her role as Ali Cobra Kaithis time she appears as a love interest to Johnny before parting ways with him and Daniel.
While talking to the guard to discuss his memoirs Resins onRalph Macchio thought back to his time with The karate kid franchisee. When asked about Elisabeth Shue’s first departure after the original film, the star expressed regret at the way he handled the departure, namely his lack of defense of his opponent’s character being shaken off. See below what Macchio explained:
I’ve never looked at it from Ali’s character’s perspective or Elisabeth’s perspective as an actor. As an older person, there was an acknowledgment of missteps, of things I should have done differently. I don’t know. They probably would have said to me, “Go out, Macchio, and start practicing your karate kicks.” Today, I think, there would be another conversation. Women in movies were often considered disposable. I see that now. Then? I did not see it. It was a matter of wasting young people on young people. I was swept up in everything that happened in my life.
Elisabeth Shue’s Karate Kid Exit Explained
Shue’s karate kid exit had remained largely unexplained in the 30 years since she left the franchise, with the actor previously expressing her frustrations with working on the original film, which subsequently led to her disinterest in returning. It has since been revealed that the producers behind the martial arts franchise chose to keep Ali out of the sequels because they hoped to turn Macchio’s Daniel LaRusso into a James Bond-esque character, give him new love interests and send him to new locations. . This would prove to be the case for the first sequel, The Karate Kid Part IIin which Daniel and Mr. Miyagi traveled to his hometown on Okinawa and got close to Tamlyn Tomita’s Kumiko, while the third film saw him return to Los Angeles and bond with Robyn Lively’s Jessica, though he would eventually remain friends with her.
While Shue may have eventually returned for a short period on Cobra KaiRalph Macchio’s regrets about her original departure from The karate kid franchise is certainly a touching nod to its costar for fans of the series. If both a new karate kid film has been confirmed to be in work alongside a potential Cobra Kai Season 6, it will be interesting to see if Shue’s Ali will get another short stint in the franchise, or if the creative team will try to bring other familiar faces back to the fold. Meanwhile, the public can rewatch Shue’s turn in the series with the original karate kid streaming on Showtime and all five seasons of Cobra Kai now available on Netflix.
Source: the guard
