Cobra Kai Star Gianni DeCenzo's Most Memorable Moment Involves A Ralph Macchio Injury
There's few shows out there that can match the exciting action of "Cobra Kai." Featuring Ralph Macchio and William Zabka as their rivaling characters of Daniel LaRusso and Johnny Lawrence from "The Karate Kid" as they open up competing dojos for the next generation of karate masters, the show is just as over-the-top and thrill-packed as it sounds. There's absolutely no shortage of brutal "Cobra Kai" fight scenes and the series employs some blazing choreography reminiscent of that from the original film franchise.
But while "Cobra Kai" certainly looks the part of a martial arts-focused show, something that fans may not realize is just how far the cast are willing to go for accurate fight scenes. With the majority of the main cast learning, training, and mostly performing their own stunts (via Men's Health), there's no doubt that it's almost always an exciting time on set. However, when it comes to Gianni DeCenzo, the actor behind the promising young karate student Demetri, his self-proclaimed "most memorable moment" of filming actually occurred during an incident where things went very wrong for the star and Ralph Macchio, resulting in the latter getting injured.
Decenzo accidentally kicked Macchio in the head
Unfortunately, Gianni DeCenzo's most memorable moment from filming "Cobra Kai" was a major headache for Ralph Macchio — literally. In a video for Vanity Fair, DeCenzo revealed to his fellow castmates that the filming story that sticks with him the most is when he and Macchio were practicing choreography, and DeCenzo accidentally kicked the beloved star of "The Karate Kid" in the head. "I thought I broke your neck," he said to Macchio. "That's my most memorable moment. I just remember it the most because I have nightmares."
While this particular incident may haunt DeCenzo, it's far from the only time that a "Cobra Kai" cast member has been the unlucky recipient of a brutal blow. "I think accidents do happen a lot on set," Xolo Maridueña, who portrays Miguel Diaz in the show, said in an exclusive interview with Looper. "I think the ones that are really drastic happen a little bit less, but I will say a lot of them happened because of me," the actor says. "I won't shy away from it — I am a little bit of a klutz in that regard, but yes, I have accidentally punched Jacob Bertrand (Hawk) in the face once."
Fortunately for DeCenzo, Macchio took his particular injury in stride. "You have an impressive hook kick, I might add," the actor jokingly responded in the video. "That was the first time I saw Demetri's level of martial arts. I'm like, 'I'm keeping this kid.'"