Ralph Macchio is an American actor known for portraying the role of Daniel LaRusso in the classic 1984 movie The Karate Kid. Back when the film gained traction, Macchio received temporary fame and attention due to his role but it was very short-lived.
In an interview, the actor talked about how he had a contract with NBC to star in television shows in 1994. Ralph Macchio stated that during that year, two shows found worldwide fame, one of them was the iconic American sitcom F.R.I.E.N.D.S and the other was ER. Sadly, the actor wasn’t cast in either of them.
Ralph Macchio Regretted Not Being Able To Star In F.R.I.E.N.D.S
After 1984, Ralph Macchio starred in The Karate Kid franchise which slowly came to a standstill by the third movie. With the third movie released in 1989, Macchio started to lose some of the fandom that he had acquired and wanted to regain the spotlight.
Well, in 1994, the actor was under contract with NBC to star in television shows. In an interview with The Guardian, the actor talked about what success meant to him after The Karate Kid. Macchio stated that he filmed several episodes of a show that were never aired but during that same year, F.R.I.E.N.D.S was created. With the first season of the American sitcom garnering a whopping 24.3 million views, the actor wanted a chance to star in some episodes of the series.
Talking about it with The Guardian, Ralph Macchio stated that although he was in a deal with the studio that was creating F.R.I.E.N.D.S and ER, he was put in neither of them which made him feel a bit sad.
“I was on an overall deal with the studio that was casting both Friends and ER. And somehow I wasn’t put in either of them.”
Being a mature person, the actor quickly stated that he was happy that he did not get a chance since he felt that only the right people should get the right parts.
“But do you want to know the truth of it? From where I’m sitting now? It was the best thing. The right people get the right parts.”
F.R.I.E.N.D.S ran for a total of 10 seasons from 1994 to 2004 and became a worldwide cultural phenomenon that people still talk about. As for Ralph Macchio, the actor was proud of himself that he didn’t let the withdrawal of success stray him away from his path.
Ralph Macchio Feels Success Is A Seductive Thing
In the interview, Macchio further talked about his desperate years when he wasn’t getting any of the popular projects. Stating that that was one of the darkest times of his career, the actor stated that success was a very seductive thing.
“It’s very hard not to become desperate when you want to find work that isn’t there. There was a section of time when that was happening to me. That’s often when actors go off the deep end or down a dark path. Because it’s such a seductive thing, success.”
Ralph Macchio found success later on by starring in the 2018 Netflix series titled Cobra Kai, which found success wherein he reprised the role of Daniel LaRusso. The series is available to stream on Netflix in the U.S.
Source: The Guardian
