The panda has gone crazy 🐼 Kung Fu Panda 4 (2024). FlipBook

Kung Fu Panda 4 is a 2024 American animated martial arts comedy film produced by DreamWorks Animation and first film in the Franchise distributed by Universal Pictures. It is the fourth installment in the Kung Fu Panda franchise and the sequel to Kung Fu Panda 3 (2016). The film was directed by Mike Mitchell, co-directed by Stephanie Ma Stine, written by Darren Lemke and the writing team of Jonathan Aibel and Glenn Berger, and produced by Rebecca Huntley. It features Jack Black, Dustin Hoffman, James Hong, Bryan Cranston, and Ian McShane reprising their roles from the previous films, with Awkwafina, Ke Huy Quan, Ronny Chieng, Lori Tan Chinn, and Viola Davis joining the cast. In the film, Po (Black), who must find and train his successor as the new Dragon Warrior, teams up with fox bandit Zhen (Awkwafina) to defeat the evil sorceress, the Chameleon (Davis).
Directors Jennifer Yuh Nelson and Alessandro Carloni were asked about the possibility of a fourth Kung Fu Panda film prior to the release of the third film in January 2016, with Nelson later saying in August 2018 that she was open to a fourth installment. DreamWorks officially announced the fourth film in August 2022, with Mitchell, Ma Stine, and Huntley attached as director, co-director, and producer, respectively, by April 2023. Most of the main voice cast, along with the return of Aibel and Berger as writers and co-producers, was announced in December 2023, following Awkwafina's casting in May of that year. Lemke joined the project in February 2024 to revise and expand the screenplay. Composer Hans Zimmer, who had scored for the previous three installments, the first two with John Powell and the third alone, returned as composer alongside frequent collaborator Steve Mazzaro. Some additional production assets were borrowed from Jellyfish Pictures.
Kung Fu Panda 4 premiered at the AMC 14 Theater at The Grove in Los Angeles on March 3, 2024, and was theatrically released in the United States on March 8. The film received mostly positive reviews from critics and has grossed over $80 million, becoming the fifth highest-grossing film of 2024 domestically.
Po, the Dragon Warrior, is helping his adoptive father, Mr. Ping, and birth father, Li Shan, open their new restaurant, but Master Shifu arrives and tells him that he must advance and become the spiritual leader of the Valley of Peace. This means that he can no longer be the Dragon Warrior and must find a suitable candidate to take his place.
Po struggles to choose the right candidate, but then he catches a thief named Zhen trying to steal ancient weapons. He sends her to prison, but he soon learns that Tai Lung has returned and destroyed an entire village. Zhen reveals that Tai Lung's return was masqueraded by the Chameleon, a powerful sorceress who can shape-shift into any animal she wants.
Po heads to Juniper City with Zhen to take down the Chameleon. However, they are arrested and eventually escape to the Den of Thieves. There, Po and Zhen head to the Chameleon's lair, but it is revealed that Zhen has been working for the Chameleon all along and betrays Po. She gives the Chameleon Po's staff, which has the power to bridge the gap through the Spirit Realm. The Chameleon uses the staff to summon every martial arts master to steal their kung fu, including Tai Lung, Lord Shen, and Kai.
Zhen realizes her mistake and decides to leave the Chameleon for good. Po reunites with his fathers, who encourage him to stop the Chameleon. He reunites with Zhen, but they get into a duel after she tries to stop him from approaching the enemy. Zhen realizes that he has made his decision and bids him farewell before Po faces the Chameleon.
Zhen convinces the Den of Thieves to help her rescue Po. Meanwhile, Tai Lung learns that Po has lost the Staff of Wisdom and loses faith in him. Po tries to fight the Chameleon but gets overwhelmed. Zhen intervenes, but the Chameleon transforms into a hybrid of several creatures and the three of them fight. Zhen falls into the rubble, while the Chameleon turns into Po to trap him in a cage.
Putting his trust in Zhen, Po gives her the Staff of Wisdom, with which she summons a majestic dragon. The dragon sends the Chameleon crashing into a wall. Po defeats the Chameleon using the staff and returns all of the stolen kung fu skills to their owners, who return to the Spirit Realm. Tai Lung gives his respect to Po and finally acknowledges him as the Dragon Warrior, before taking the Chameleon into the Spirit Realm with him.
Back at the Valley of Peace, Zhen is ready to return to prison, but Po decides to choose her as his successor, much to Shifu's annoyance and chagrin. Confident of his choice, Po and the Furious Five help train her to become the next Dragon Warrior.