Last night Ralph Macchio revealed on Jimmy Kimmel Live what he claims are the worst ideas he’s ever been pitched, with the highlight a Rocky and Karate Kid crossover movie….and we want Macchio to reconsider.
When Jimmy Kimmel asked the Cobra Kai star about the ideas he heard throughout the years in regards to resurrecting the noted franchise, Macchio explained that he was hesitant to go back because the concepts were so terrible they’d risk ruining the good name of Karate Kid.
When Kimmel asked for specifics, Macchio mentioned one where Miyagi comes back as a ghost – and being told to sand the floor out of the blue in the middle of the night might be quite a haunting experience.
However, he also mentioned an idea pitched to him while he and John G. Avildsen were having lunch. Avildsen directed the original Rocky (for which he won the Academy Award) and also the first three Karate Kid films so it’s likely that the meeting was for this specific pitch.
Macchio explained to Kimmel that the two writers started their pitch by asking, ‘What if Rocky Balboa had a kid and you had a kid?”
Avildsen must’ve begun laughing, or at least tried to hold it in, though the writers went on to explain, “Mickey and Miyagi would come together and it’s this whole mixed martial arts thing!”
So, what if this actually happened? It would pit two iconic fighting characters against each other while their iconic trainers would enlighten us all with endless lines of inspiration. I wouldn’t mind seeing the Karate Kid’s kid chasing a chicken or Rocky Jr. painting the fence as the trainers switch fighters or prepare them to work together to fight a common enemy.
We would see the Karate Kid “eat lightning and crap thunder,” while Rocky waxes the car and catches flies with his chopsticks to the tune of Eye of the Tiger. Maybe Rocky could learn to chase and catch chickens with chopsticks? The possibilities are endless. Together, they can take on Cobra Kai where Clubber Lang’s kid takes classes. I mean, do you really think Hawk’s mohawk wasn’t inspired by Clubber Lang’s kid? They could even call this movie The Eye of the Cobra.
Is it possible that I’m one of the writers that pitched this idea? Yes, it’s possible but don’t get me started on how Johnny Lawrence is really a Drago. We’ve already been blessed with movies about Apollo Creed’s kid fighting Drago’s kid so it’s not like we aren’t already just a step away from this Rocky vs Karate Kid mashup.