Karate Kid: Legends star Ben Wang on what he learned from working with Jackie Chan: "He's made 200 of these things, and it's like every movie is his first"

The cast of Karate Kid: Legends standing together
(Image credit: Sony Pictures Releasing)

The original Karate Kid movie might have been released 41 years ago, but Karate Kid: Legends is bringing the classic story to a new generation.

Karate Kid: Legends picks up after both the original franchise (including the events of Cobra Kai season 6) and the 2010 remake, which stars Jackie Chan as the Miyagi-esque Mr. Han, uniting the two branches of the universe for the first time.

Ben Wang stars as Li Fong, a relative of Mr. Han's who is in need of some martial arts training from both Mr. Han himself and Ralph Macchio's Daniel LaRusso. Together, they blend their unique karate and kung fu styles to train Li for an upcoming tournament.

A huge theme of the franchise is the importance of a good teacher – so what did Wang learn from his co-stars, Macchio and Chan?

"I mean, where do I start?" Wang says when we meet with him and Macchio in London. "Just the kinds of people that both Ralph and Jackie are. Jackie loves being on set. He loves making movies. He's made 200 of these things, and it's like every movie is his first. And the same with Ralph and his dedication to the franchise and to the character, and also to the legacy of these films and of Mr. Miyagi, and the magic that you guys made in that first movie. Seeing how dedicated both of these legends are to filmmaking and to the franchise, it's really invigorating. It makes me want to match that."

Karate Kid: Legends is in UK cinemas this May 28 and US theaters this May 30.

In the meantime, check out our guide to all the year's most exciting upcoming movies for everything else that's in store.

Molly Edwards
Deputy Entertainment Editor

I'm the Deputy Entertainment Editor here at GamesRadar+, covering all things film and TV for the site's Total Film and SFX sections. I previously worked on the Disney magazines team at Immediate Media, and also wrote on the CBeebies, MEGA!, and Star Wars Galaxy titles after graduating with a BA in English.

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