Ralph Macchio

Ralph Macchio began his screen career in 1980 with a Bubble Yum commercial and was cast as Jeremy Andretti in the final season of Eight Is Enough (1980). He gained wider recognition as Johnny Cade in Francis Ford Coppola's film adaptation of The Outsiders (1983).

Macchio achieved international fame starring as Daniel LaRusso in The Karate Kid (1984), a role he reprised in The Karate Kid Part II (1986), The Karate Kid Part III (1989), Cobra Kai (2018–2025), and Karate Kid: Legends (2025). He also reprised the character in the No More Kings music video "Sweep the Leg" (2007), the Funny or Die short Wax On, F*ck Off (2010), an episode of How I Met Your Mother (2013), and an episode of Robot Chicken (2013).

Outside of the Karate Kid franchise, Macchio starred as Eugene Martone in Crossroads (1986) and appeared on Broadway opposite Robert De Niro in Cuba and His Teddy Bear (1986). He played Billy Gambini in My Cousin Vinny (1992) and starred as J. Pierrepont Finch in the U.S. touring revival of How to Succeed in Business Without Really Trying (1996).

His later television work includes appearances as himself on Entourage (2005), a recurring role as Archie Rodriguez on Ugly Betty (2008), a staged reading of A Room of My Own (2010), participation on Dancing with the Stars (2011), and the role of Joseph Stefano in Hitchcock (2012). His additional film credits include Up the Academy (1980), Distant Thunder (1988), Naked in New York (1993), A Good Night to Die (2003), Beer League (2006), and Too Much Sun (2010). From 2017 to 2019, he had a recurring role as Officer Haddix on The Deuce.

Macchio has also worked behind the camera, directing the award-winning short films Love Thy Brother (2002) and Across the Alley (2013). In 2022, he published the memoir Waxing On: The Karate Kid and Me. In 2024, he appeared in Coldplay's music video for "The Karate Kid."