A Northfielder is the next “Karate Kid.”
Ben Wang, who moved from Shanghai, China to Northfield when he was 6 years old, has been cast in the lead role in the latest installment of a classic move franchise. The original “Karate Kid” Ralph Macchio will reprise his role as Daniel LaRusso from the 1984 classic. Meanwhile, Jackie Chan will return to his character of Mr. Han from the 2010 remake.
According to Variety , Wang “landed the sought-after role after a worldwide search that saw thousands of young actors from around the globe vie for the title role in Sony’s new ‘Karate Kid’ movie … Per studio insiders, Wang delivered a standout audition performance that demonstrated his deep connection to the character.”
Previous to this casting, Wang starred in the Disney+ original “American Born Chinese .” Not only was Wang the central figure in the show that tackles head on cultural differences facing Asian Americans now, but Wang’s face appeared in the national marketing campaign for the eight-episode series. And he did all that beside some of the biggest Asian actors in America, Michelle Yeoh and Ke Huy Quan, who both starred in the 2023 Oscars Best Picture winner “Everything, Everywhere All at Once.”
Still, even with that experience, plus a few feature films under his belt (including a part in the currently in theaters 2024 musical version of “Mean Girls”), this will be a step up for the Northfield actor.
Wang, who is also fluent in Mandarin, is skilled across many forms of martial arts, including Karate, Wing Chun/Kung Fu, Gumdo, Kempo and Taekwando. These skills will likely come in handy, as made obvious by the film’s name.
According to Variety, plot details are still under wraps on the new movie. But there won’t be a long turnaround for this project. Sony Pictures will release the film in theaters on Dec. 13, 2024.
The film will be directed by Jonathan Entwistle, who is listed as the the creator and director of three critically acclaimed projects: Netflix’s “I Am Not Okay With This” and “The End of the F—ing World,“ plus Amazon Prime’s “Vanity Fair.”
The scribe of “Peter Rabbit,” Rob Lieber, will pen the screenplay, and Karen Rosenfelt will produce.
The “Karate Kid” films have earned $618 million globally and spawned the Emmy-nominated Netflix series “Cobra Kai,” which also stars Macchio, along with William Zabka, who reprised his role as Johnny Lawrence from the original film.
Connections to Northfield
In a 2023 interview, Wang said growing up in Northfield as one of the only Asian Americans among his peers provided him with a unique experience that gave him a valuable perspective he mines in his acting career.
“I want to thank Northfield for a being a community that provided me with good mentors like Bob Gregory-Bjorklund and Shari Setchell [two area drama teachers],” he said. “They pulled me in the right direction.”
In fall 2023, Wang returned to town to serve as a guest director for the Northfield High School theater production of “Twelve Angry Jurors.” Before getting to work, he offered himself up for a Q&A session with Northfield’s current aspiring actors.
Wang told the students as he sat on the lip of the auditorium stage that the actors strike allowed him to have a “fall break.”
“With the strike going on, I’ve basically had the whole summer off,” said Wang, who has lived in New York City since his Raider graduation, after which he enrolled in New York University.
Wang answered questions about his favorite actors, directors and productions, as well as going to auditions, dancing and singing and acquiring an agent.
He said he was lucky to get an agent while he was still at NYU. Besides being cast as the main character Jin Wang in “American Born Chinese,” Wang has been in the 2023 film “Chang Can Dunk,” CBS television’s “MacGyver,” “Search Party” on HBO and the Hulu teen comedy “Sex Appeal.”
He was in the off-Broadway production of “Sing Street the Musical,” and later this year will appear in the upcoming film “Sight” with Greg Kinnear.
“Dancing was never my thing,” Wang told the students seated around him. “But, yeah, acting kinda is.”
Hopefully, the young star is more comfortable with the martial arts than the art of dance.
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