Why Elisabeth Shue Made Fun of Ralph Macchio

As fans of the Karate Kid franchise are aware, Elisabeth Shue recently appeared on Cobra Kai as Daniel LaRusso’s ex-girlfriend Ali Mills. In a January interview with Entertainment Weekly, the actress spoke about working alongside her Karate Kid co-stars, William Zabka and Ralph Macchio, for the acclaimed series.

“We kept reminiscing and laughing, constantly reliving the first Karate Kid every minute between takes. Nonstop reminiscing about our experience and laughing about what a great movie it turned out to be,” said the actress. 

She went on to say that since the release of The Karate Kid, she has been constantly “asked about [the movie].” Shue stated that due to this she “started to have this sort of story line about making fun of it just a bit. Because at the time, Karate Kid, it sounded like, what kind of movie is that?” 

Shue Revealed That She Publicly Teased Ralph Macchio

GettyRalph Macchio talks during San Diego Comic-Con 2019: Day Two.

During the Entertainment Weekly interview, Shue also revealed that she had publicly teased Macchio for not having the most athletic build.  

“I would even make fun of Ralph, like, ‘He didn’t look like anyone who could win a karate tournament!’ I just had this way of talking about it. We kind of laughed about that a lot and how we were always giving each other crap over the years,” said Shue.

This is not the first time that Shue has admitted to playfully giving Macchio a hard time. While speaking to Sports Illustrated with the cast and crew of The Karate Kid, the actress stated that she wanted to practice martial arts for the 1984 film.

“I remember being incredibly jealous that Ralph got to learn karate and I didn’t. I made fun of him a little bit, like: I could kick your a**,” stated the mother-of-three. 

Shue also noted that she was a soccer player “growing up” during a 2017 interview on The Rich Eisen Show. She disclosed she had to conceal her athletic abilities while filming the scene in The Karate Kid when Daniel shows Ali how to juggle a soccer ball. 

“I had to pretend to be bad in The Karate Kid. I had to pretend that I didn’t know what I was doing, but I was better than Ralph Macchio at soccer,” shared the actress. 

She proceeded to state that she believed she would have excelled “at karate too.”

“I’m sure I would have been much better if I had trained… I could have kicked his a**,” said the Cocktail star. 

‘Cobra Kai’ Star Mary Mouser Stated That Shue Mentioned Wanting Ali To Practice Martial Arts

GettyMary Mouser wears a red dress at SVA Theater in 2018.

Cobra Kai star Mary Mouser, who plays Daniel LaRusso’s daughter Samantha, recently recounted meeting Shue in an Instagram Live interview with Teen Vogue.

She revealed that during the production of the show’s third season, the Leaving Las Vegas actress complimented her. While speaking to Mouser, Shue also mentioned that she wished her character had practiced karate like Samantha does on Cobra Kai.

“She was so nice and was like, ‘I really love your character and I really love that she gets to do karate. That’s something I always wanted to do,’” stated the 24-year-old. 

To see more of Shue, be sure to watch Cobra Kai Season 3, available on Netflix. 

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