-Ralph Macchio, welcome back to the show.
-Thank you. -Congrats on "Cobra Kai."
-Thank you, man. -Last time we were here,
we were about it before it came out.
-Yeah. -Now it's been out,
everyone loved it. It was a super hit.
It's 100% Fresh on "Rotten Tomatoes"
Congratulations. That's a big deal.
[ Cheers and applause ] -That's right.
-I also read that it's one of the most searched TV shows
on Google for 2018. -We'll take it.
-Yeah, exactly, yeah. That's pretty good.
-It has been beyond expectations.
And we are just, hopefully, only just beginning.
So it's really exciting. -I loved it.
Are kids now coming up to you?
-Yeah, that's what's great about it.
We have great young characters in the show,
along with the great rivalry between Johnny and Daniel.
But, yeah, I get a lot of young kids now
like, "This is my favorite show,"
and, "My dad -- it was his favorite movie.
And now this is our favorite thing to do together --
watch 'Cobra Kai,' and it's awesome."
And then they usually say, "And my grandma
had you on her wall." [ Laughter ]
And I do the math, and it's maybe true.
-No, that's not true. -But, uh...
And so then you get these guys
that the movie changed their life or whatever.
This is the show that they never thought they needed.
And they just are very passionate.
And they're like, "And my dad,
he grew up in Jersey just like you, too, Ralph."
And I'm like, "You know, I didn't grow up in Jersey.
That was the character."
He's like, "No, you're from Newark man."
[ Laughter ] And I'm like, "No, I'm not.
I actually live in the burbs in New York with my wife."
He says, "No, no, your mother drives a green station wagon."
[ Laughter ] "And when it stalls,
you push it, and that's how you got to California."
-"Wax on, wax off.
I know all about your life, man."
-Memories get a little warped.
Like, someone will also say,
"I've been a fan since 'Happy Days.'"
[ Laughter ]
And I say, "Well, oh, you know what?
Pat Morita played Arnold in 'Happy Days,'
and he was Mr. Miyagi, so I see the confusion."
Like, "No, no, when you loved Joanie."
And I'm like, "Look, dude, I'm not Chachi."
[ Laughter ]
-"Don't make me roundhouse you, dude.
I'm not Chachi." -"With all due respect."
-Is it true that your son's name is Daniel?
-Yes, it is.
-Is it based on your character Daniel?
-It had a little something to do with it.
It's one of those things that too soon --
and who would ever think I'd come back to it?
-You never thought that you would come back to it.
-We love the name.
My wife and I love the name Daniel.
Her cousin and good friend, growing up's, name was Daniel.
The character initially was named Danny Weber.
And then I got the part, and they added some vowels.
-Daniel LaRusso. -Yeah, LaRusso.
But my son, I think, is proud of it.
That's funny, 'cause when he was a kid --
he's like 6, 7 years old, in Little League --
I was not coaching the team but cheering my kid on.
And he's running around third, and then he takes a spill,
going around third base, and tumbles.
And you just hear the coach on the other team going,
"Down goes LaRusso!" -[ Laughing ] Yeah, yeah.
That's gonna happen. -Like, "Dude, it's my kid."
It's like John Kreese from "Cobra Kai"
was coaching the other team. -Exactly, yeah.
But to be honest, even if he was named Ben,
he still would have said, "Down goes LaRusso."
-You got it, you got it. -Let's talk about Season 2.
I'm so excited about this -- "Cobra Kai."
William Zabka, who plays Johnny, gosh, you guys are just --
-He kills it, he kills it. -You guys are great together!
-Thanks, man. -Did you guys fight this season?
-Well, I can't say too much about it,
but they put it in a trailer. There's a little bit of a tease.
So, it was interesting, after 35 years,
you know, I was a little nervous getting back there.
Some people think I won with the illegal kick
in the original film. So, here's William Zabka,
who, arguably, was considered the dick of the '80s, I guess.
[ Laughter ] -That's how good he was.
-He's a great friend, a sweetheart of a guy,
a phenomenal actor, but I'm thinking,
maybe he's a little pissed... -Yeah, yeah. Wow.
-...and it's his chance. And it was funny,
we were doing the rehearsal of some of the fisticuffs there
before we shot it the next day, and he's like, "Okay,
let's just run through this one more time.
Let's do this part just for pretend."
And I took pause to that, and I said, "You know,
Bill, tomorrow, when the cameras are here,
it's still pretend." [ Laughter ]
-"Dude, we're not actually ever going to fight."
-And it's like, "You're gonna be fine."
We shared a great laugh. -He's like, "Oops, yeah."
-And I'm here to talk about it. So, you guys are gonna love it.
The show is really, really good. -The show is great.
It's funny, it's got heart, it's family.
I just -- It hits all the bases for me.
I love it so much. -Thank you.
-What's happening in Season 2 now?
-Season 2 is sort of
the battle for the heart of the San Fernando Valley.
It's Cobra Kai versus Miyagi-Do, where Daniel LaRusso
now opens up Miyagi-Do Dojo to teach and carry on
the legacy of the great Mr. Miyagi.
So there's a lot of that woven into the show.
And it becomes, you know, the good over evil,
depending on which side you feel is good or evil.
You know? And it's exciting.
It's exciting. It's a great rivalry.
John Kreese, played by Marty Kove, is back,
and he kicks butt in the show. The great cast.
The young cast is terrific.
-I want to show everyone a clip. It's fantastic.
Here's Ralph Macchio in the new season of "Cobra Kai."
Take a look at this.
-So, did I tell you I had to double the classes at Cobra Kai?
So many kids want to join my dojo.
-Wow. That's great. I'm so proud of you, Johnny.
-I love how passionate my students are.
Sure, there may not be as many, but they have heart.
-Oh. Okay. So, this is happening.
-I'm just saying, it's not the quantity, it's the quality.
-Bigger is better.
-Yeah, well, it was just little ol' me at the All-Valley,
so didn't need an army, just the right moves.
-Okay, are you two done comparing class sizes?
[ Cheers and applause ]
-Dude, Ralph Macchio, everybody!
The new season of "Cobra Kai" premieres April 24th
on YouTube Premium!