- “Grab destiny by the dumplings.”
- ―Tagline
Kung Fu Panda 3 is a 2016 American 3D computer-animated action martial arts comedy film, that is DreamWorks Animation's 32nd feature film, produced by DreamWorks Animation, Pacific Data Images and Oriental DreamWorks, and distributed by 20th Century Fox. It is directed by Jennifer Yuh Nelson, with Alessandro Carloni serving as co-director. The film is written by Jonathan Aibel and Glenn Berger, produced by Melissa Cobb, and executive produced by Guillermo del Toro. It is the second sequel to the 2008 film Kung Fu Panda and third installment in the Kung Fu Panda franchise. The film feature the voices of Jack Black, Angelina Jolie, Dustin Hoffman, Seth Rogen, Jackie Chan, Lucy Liu, David Cross, Bryan Cranston, Kate Hudson, and J. K. Simmons.
In January 2015, it was announced the release date was updated to March 18, 2016.[1] On April 14, 2015, DreamWorks moved the release date up to January 29, 2016.[2]
The film received positive reviews from critics and was a box office success, grossing $521 million worldwide against its $145 million budget.
A sequel, titled Kung Fu Panda 4, was released on March 8, 2024.[3]
Synopsis[]
Living large and loving life, Po realizes that he has a lot to learn if he's going to fulfill the next challenge from his instructor. After reuniting with his long-lost father, Po must transition from student to teacher and train a group of fun-loving, clumsy pandas to become martial-arts fighters. Together, the kung-fu brethren unite to take on the evil Kai, a supernatural warrior who becomes stronger with each battle.
Plot[]
Oogway fights against his old bull adversary in the spirit realm, an undead warrior named Kai, who has defeated all the other kung fu masters in the realm and taken their chi. Oogway too is ensnared and has his chi stolen, but not before he warns Kai that the Dragon Warrior, Po, will stop him. Kai takes this as a challenge to steal the Dragon Warrior's chi and returns to the mortal realm.
Meanwhile, Master Shifu announces his retirement from teaching and passes the role of teacher to Po. An initially excited Po realizes that teaching kung fu is not as easy as anticipated, and the Furious Five are injured as a result. Po is demoralized because of his failure, but Shifu advises Po that instead of trying to be like Shifu, he should try to be himself. Po returns home where he meets a panda, Li Shan, whom they realize is his long-lost biological father. They quickly bond with each other, much to Po's adoptive father, Mr. Ping's jealousy.
After introducing Li to Shifu and his friends, Po and the Five defend the Valley of Peace from jade zombies that Kai has created from the chi of past kung fu masters. The team learns through research that Oogway and Kai were once brothers-in-arms and very close friends. After Oogway was injured in battle, Kai carried him to a village of pandas who healed him with their mastery of chi. The pandas then taught Oogway how to utilize chi to help others. However, Kai wanted the power for himself and tried to steal the pandas' chi, forcing Oogway to banish him to the spirit realm. To defeat Kai, Po must learn to master the use of chi himself. Li offers to teach him by taking him to his secret panda village. While Shifu and the Furious Five stay behind to deal with Kai, Po and Li travel to the village. Mr. Ping comes along as a stowaway, worried that he will lose Po's affections to Li. Although Po is eager to learn chi, Li tells him he must first learn the relaxed life of a panda in the village.
Kai takes the chi of nearly every kung fu master in China, including Shifu and the Furious Five, except Tigress, who escapes warning Po and the other pandas that Kai is coming. Afraid, Li and the pandas prepare to run away. When Po demands that Li teach him how to use chi immediately, Li confesses that he lied to him about chi mastery and that he only brought Po to their village because he was afraid of losing him again. Furious over his father's misdirection, Po isolates himself to train vigorously in preparation for fighting Kai. Mr. Ping, who realizes Po has become happier with Li in his life, tells Li that Po being mad at him is part of being a father, but Po will forgive him. So Li goes back to Po and says the pandas will help him fight Kai's army. Realizing what had previously made him fail as a teacher, Po agrees and teaches them to use their everyday activities as kung fu skills.
Kai arrives and sends his minions to capture Po, who sets the pandas, Ping, and Tigress upon them, distracting Kai. They defeat the jade zombie army, but when Po tries to use his signature Wuxi Finger Hold on Kai to send him back to the spirit realm, Kai reveals that it only works on mortals, not a spirit warrior like himself. Kai gains the upper hand in their fight, but Po uses the Wuxi Finger Hold on himself while gripping Kai around the neck, transporting them to the spirit realm. They fight again, and Kai subdues Po and begins to steal his chi. Using what they learned from Po, his friends and family use their chi to empower him. Po harnesses their chi to create a giant dragon figure with which he overpowers and defeats Kai, destroying him and restoring all fallen masters to normal.
In an ethereal golden pond, Oogway appears to Po and informs him that his journey as the Dragon Warrior has come full circle, declaring Po to be his successor. He reveals that he sent Li to find Po. Po chooses to return to the mortal world and brings with him a mystic jade yin-yang staff bestowed by Oogway. He and his extended family all return to the valley, continuing to practice kung fu and chi.
Voice Cast[]
- Jack Black as Po
- Bryan Cranston as Li Shan
- Angelina Jolie as Tigress
- Dustin Hoffman as Shifu
- J. K. Simmons as Kai
- Jackie Chan as Monkey
- Lucy Liu as Viper
- Seth Rogen as Mantis
- David Cross as Crane
- James Hong as Mr. Ping
- Randall Duk Kim as Oogway
- Kate Hudson as Mei Mei
- Fred Tatasciore as Bear
- Stephen Kearin as Chicken
- Jean-Claude Van Damme as Croc
- Barbara Dirikson as Grandma Panda
- Steele Gagnon as Bao
- Michael Gough as Shrek (film's commercial)
- Dean Edwards as Donkey (film's commercial)
See full cast at IMDB here
Sequel[]
- Main article: Kung Fu Panda 4
On December 3, 2010, DreamWorks Animation CEO Jeffrey Katzenberg officially confirmed that the series could see three more sequels after Kung Fu Panda 3, bringing it to a six-film series. On January 13, 2016, Collider asked the filmmakers of Kung Fu Panda 3 about the possibility of a fourth film, with co-director Jennifer Yuh Nelson answering, "It's one at a time. We want to make this a perfect jewel, and then we'll see what happens after that," and co-director Alessandro Carloni replying, "With the sequels, we don't want to try to have them feel open-ended. We want it to feel like a completed journey, and we feel this movie does. And then, if a fantastic story presents itself, great." On August 2, 2018, when asked about any updates on Kung Fu Panda 4, Nelson replied that she did not know and had always seen the series as a trilogy, but that she was open to the idea of a fourth installment, as long as the focus remained on Po.
On August 12, 2022, DreamWorks Animation officially confirmed that Kung Fu Panda 4 was in production and is set to be released on March 8, 2024.
In April 2023, during CinemaCon, it was announced that The Lego Movie 2: The Second Part, Trolls and Shrek Forever After director Mike Mitchell will direct the film, with Stephanie Ma Stine as a co-director and Rebecca Huntley as a producer, while Black revealed the story, which follows Po trying to find a new Dragon Warrior in a fox named Zhen while facing a new villain, the Chameleon, who can bring back to life deceased villains like Tai Lung.
On December 12, 2023, it was announced that Awkwafina, Viola Davis, and Ke Huy Quan would join the cast, playing Zhen, Chameleon, and Han respectively. It was also announced that Dustin Hoffman, Ian McShane, Bryan Cranston, and James Hong would reprise their roles from the previous films.
Gallery[]
Videos[]
References[]
- ↑ "Massive Layoffs at DreamWorks Animation". Big Cartoon News, January 24, 2015
- ↑ "Kung Fu Panda 3 Pulled Forward". Big Cartoon News, April 14, 2015
- ↑ "DreamWorks Animation’s ‘Kung Fu Panda 4’ Is Happening; Universal Sets 2024 Release", Deadline, August 12, 2022
External links[]
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