A new Karate Kid will reunite Ralph Macchio with Jackie Chan

Jackie Chan AND Ralph Macchiowho acted in films Karate Kid decades later, they will return to play their characters in what is announced to be Sony Pictures’ latest installment of the iconic martial arts franchise, 40 years after the release of the original.

Jonathan Entwistle, best known for his award-winning teen television dramas I’m not okay with this (or This shit is beyond my capabilities) and The end of the damn world, will direct the film, which still has no title. Sony is positioning the film as a “fusion” and continues the mythology of the original franchise. The screenwriter of Peter Rabbit’s pranksRob Lieber, writes the screenplay.

A global search was launched for an actor to play the title character, and Chan and Macchio released an introductory video. And Ben Wang is the next Karate Kid.

Wang starred alongside Michelle Yeoh in the Disney+ series Chinese born in Americaand landed the coveted role after a global search in which thousands of young actors from around the world competed for the lead role.

The actor, who also speaks fluent Mandarin, is skilled in many forms of martial arts, including karate, wing chun/kung fu, gumdo, kempo and taekwondo.

The casting came after a global search that saw thousands of submissions from around the world, with 10,000 submissions in the first 24 hours alone.

The plot? Nothing is known.

However, it is known that the latest version will bring the story to the east coast of the United States and will focus on a Chinese teenager, who finds strength and direction through martial arts and a tough but wise mentor. Plot details for the new film are still under wraps, but Macchio will reprise his role as Daniel LaRusso, while Chan will return to his role as Mr. Han, a kung fu master in the 2010 remake film starring Jaden Smith.

Sony has set the release date for December 13, 2024.

Karate Kid was released in 1984 and the original film was an unexpected success. Macchio plays Daniel LaRusso, a boy from Brooklyn who moves to California and becomes an unlikely karate champion under the tutelage of Mr. Miyagi, a man who works as a building maintenance man, who is quite competent in karate. Miyagi was played by Pat Moritawho earned an Oscar nomination for best supporting actor for his work, and died in 2011.

The film spawned three sequels: Macchio appeared in two of them, while Hilary Swank took over the lead role three decades ago, in 1994. The franchise has seen a resurgence in recent years thanks to Cobra Kai. The series became a hit on YouTube and Netflix, bringing back many of the original characters, including LaRusso, and introducing a new generation of kick-ass teenagers.

A successful remake

Sony had revived the title in 2010, with a remake that updated the story for more modern and even global times, focusing on an American boy (Jaden Smith, Will’s son) who moves to Beijing and is mentored by a master of martial arts. Chan. The film proved to be another sleeper hit, grossing $359 million on a $40 million budget and garnering positive reviews.

The films of Karate Kid they grossed $618 million worldwide and spawned the Emmy-nominated Netflix series Cobra Kai. The series, created by Josh Heald, Jon Hurwitz and Hayden Schlossberg, is set decades after the events of the original films, reigniting the rivalry between Daniel and Johnny Lawrence (William Zabka).

Chan is an actor who also produces and directs, having become an action star in his native China with films such as Drunk teacher and franchising Police shopaa Project A, where his stunts dazzled audiences. He jumped to the United States in 1995 with Massacre in New York -but filmed in Vancouver, Canada-, and continued to star in action comedies such as Rush Hour, an explosive couplewith Chris Tucker, and Shanghai Kid, together with Owen Wilson. He voiced him in the films Kung Fu Panda and, most recently, Splinter the Rat in Teenage Mutant Ninja Turtles: Mutant Mayhem. In 2016, Chan became the first Chinese actor to receive an Academy Award for Lifetime Achievement for his contributions to the film industry.