By/July 24, 2017 10:58 am EST/Updated: Oct. 12, 2020 5:49 am EST

Directed by John G. Avildsen (the Oscar-winning filmmaker behind Rocky), The Karate Kid is one of the best sports movies ever made. Starring Ralph Macchio and Pat Morita, this feel-good flick focuses on a bullied high school kid who learns martial arts from an elderly Japanese master, and the result is pure 1980s magic. Over 30 years later, people are still watching this film and quoting the 'wax on, wax off' line, and we all desperately wish we could throw that crane kick.

Starring the now middle-aged Billy Zabka and Ralph Macchio, YouTube Red’s Karate Kid reboot is sentimental and watchable but ultimately unrewarding 2 May 2018 Cobra Kai review – YouTube's Karate. The Karate Kid is a 1984 American martial arts drama film written by Robert Mark Kamen and directed by John G. Avildsen.It is the first installment in The Karate Kid franchise, and stars Ralph Macchio, Pat Morita, and Elisabeth Shue. Mar 12, 2017 Published on Mar 12, 2017 The Karate Kyd 2010 actors then and now. We made this video to show you the changes that the actors went through since the movie was released. The Karate Kyd cast: Jaden. The Karate Kyd 2010 actors then and now. We made this video to show you the changes that the actors went through since the movie was released.

But while The Karate Kid is pretty much a perfect movie, there's far more to this film than sanding floors, painting fences, and beating up bad guys. The behind-the-scenes story is equally fascinating, from the movie's origin to its connections to real-life events. So perhaps it's time to put down those chopsticks and leave that fly alone as we discover why The Karate Kid is the best around.

The inspiration behind The Karate Kid

The saga of Daniel LaRusso and Mr. Miyagi all started when producer Jerry Weintraub (Nashville, Ocean's Eleven) was watching television one day. According to Jared Cowan of LA Weekly, Weintraub saw a news story about a local kid who earned a black belt in karate to protect himself from a group of bullies. Weintraub was immediately inspired, and soon enough, Columbia Pictures hired Robert Mark Kamen (pictured above) to write a screenplay.

Now, if you've never heard Kamen's name, you've certainly seen his movies. The man has written films like Taps, Lethal Weapon 3, The Fifth Element, The Transporter, and Taken. And when he was approached with the idea of a martial arts movie, Kamen was able to draw on his personal experience while writing the script. After all, he'd been studying karate for 17 years.

He based the character of Mr. Miyagi on one of his instructors, a guy from Okinawa named Meitoku Yagi. And the character of John Kreese—the evil 'sweep the leg' sensei—was a combination of two people Kamen had known in real life: a tough Marine-turned-karate teacher and a martial arts instructor who ordered his pupils to injure their opponents.

Kamen was also the man who came up with the film's title...sort of. Originally, the studio was just calling it 'The Karate Kid Project.' In a stroke of genius, the screenwriter decided to just get rid of the last word, and voila, that's how you name a classic movie.

Casting Mr. Miyagi

Other than maybe Yoda or Obi-Wan Kenobi, Mr. Miyagi is probably the greatest movie mentor of all time. Of course, if the filmmakers had cast anyone else in the part besides Pat Morita, it's possible moviegoers would've forgotten about The Karate Kid long ago. Morita is perfect in the role, and his performance earned him an Oscar nod for Best Supporting Actor.

However, back in the day, Morita wasn't such an obvious choice for the part of a martial arts master. He used to be a comedian, and before The Karate Kid, Morita was best known for playing the comical character of Arnold on Happy Days. So when director John G. Avildsen approached producer Jerry Weintraub with the idea of casting Morita as Miyagi, Weintraub wouldn't even consider it. He didn't want a funnyman. Instead, he wanted to go with Toshiro Mifune, the Japanese star known for movies like Yojimbo, Rashomon, and Seven Samurai. But Avildsen was convinced Morita was the right man for the job, so he came up with a clever way to trick Weintraub into watching the actor's audition.

Avildsen did a script reading with Morita and recorded the whole thing. Then during a run-of-the-mill meeting with Weintraub, Avildsen pulled a fast one, putting on the tape and surprising Weintraub with the audition. However, instead of getting angry, the producer was kind of impressed, although he required Morita to audition five more times before giving him the gig. But after passing his fifth and final test, Weintraub admitted that he'd almost made 'the worst mistake of [his] life' by brushing him off. Realizing the error of his ways, the producer gave Morita the role, and the rest, as they say, is history.

Casting Daniel and Johnny

Believe it or not, Ralph Macchio was 22 when he played the part of teenaged Daniel LaRusso, but despite the age gap, Macchio made for a perfect protagonist. Coming off Francis Ford Coppola's The Outsiders, Macchio had some steam heading into The Karate Kid, but when it came to landing the role, his snarky attitude is what really helped him get the gig.

After screenwriter Robert Mark Kamen met Macchio to see if he was right for the role, he came away describing the young actor as 'obnoxious,' and really, that's exactly what Kamen and John G. Avildsen wanted. They were looking for somebody with an attitude, a guy who wouldn't take crap from anyone, just like Daniel. In fact, they liked Macchio so much that they kind of rewrote the part for him. Originally, his character was called 'Daniel Webber,' but since Macchio was Italian, they changed his last name to 'LaRusso.'

As for William Zabka—the actor who played bond bully Johnny Lawrence—he probably got the job thanks to some extreme method acting. When he was first trying out for the part, Zabka got so into character that he actually grabbed Avildsen by the shirt, which usually isn't a smart idea when you're trying to impress the director.

The Karate Kid 1984

But in this case, it seems like Zabka's bad guy persona paid off because he was called back several times. However, during one of these auditions, Zabka got a little too zealous showing off his martial arts skills and actually kicked a hole in the wall. Still, all's well that ends well, and Zabka was cast as the captain of the Cobra Kai, creating one of the most memorable villains to come out of the 1980s.

Busting the Chuck Norris myth

While Johnny Lawrence is the bad guy we all love to hate, John Kreese is the real villain of The Karate Kid. Kreese is a Vietnam vet who believes in striking first, striking hard, and showing no mercy. He's the kind of guy who assaults his own students, and he comes off as the quintessential martial arts monster thanks to a menacing performance from Martin Kove. However, many Karate Kid fans have wondered what the movie would've been like if the Cobra Kai sensei had been played by Chuck Norris. After all, Norris was offered the part but turned it down...right?

Well, according to Brian Cronin of CBR.com, the Chuck Norris connection is nothing more than a myth. As it turns out, Norris was never offered the role, although if someone had asked him to play Kreese, Norris says he would've passed on the part. Why? Because he thought the character cast a bad light on karate. Sure, that might sound a little silly, but it's important to remember that, despite a decade or so of ridiculous Chuck Norris joke, the man is a legitimate martial artist.

Back in the '70s, he ran multiple dojos, and he was the undefeated world professional middleweight karate champion for six years. So it makes sense that he wouldn't want to play a character that might hurt the sport. Of course, we're just dealing with hypotheticals as he was never offered the part. Still, while it's fun to imagine Walker, Texas Ranger in the role, we can all agree that Martin Kove was the best choice, as Norris can throw a kick but isn't so great at reciting dialogue.

The man behind the martial arts

When Ralph Macchio and company signed up for The Karate Kid, none of them knew much about martial arts. Sure, William Zabka was a wrestler in high school, but shooting for takedowns isn't the same as throwing roundhouse kicks. So to get them ready for a karate tournament, the filmmakers called in Pat E. Johnson. This guy had studied tang soo do while serving in Korea,

The Karate Kid 2017