This morning, fans of Universal Pictures and Dreamworks’ enduring animated hero “Kung Fu Panda” is going on a fourth adventure! The first trailer for the upcoming “Kung Fu Panda 4” has been unleashed on the world.
Jack Black returns as Po, and this time brings two Oscar-winning newcomers to the franchise; EGOT Viola Davis as villain The Chameleon, and Ke Huy Quan as Han, the leader of the Den of Thieves. Awkwafina also stars as Zhen. Ian McShane returns as Tai Lung, Bryan Cranston as Li Shan, James Hong as Mr Ping, Dustin Hoffman as Master Shifu, as well as Angelina Jolie as Master Tigress, Jackie Chan as Master Monkey, Seth Rogen as Master Mantis, David Cross as Master Crane, and Lucy Liu as Master Viper.
Universal/Dreamworks actually provided a…rather long and thorough description for the film:
This spring, for the first time in almost a decade, comedy icon Jack Black returns to his role as Po, the world’s most unlikely kung fu master, with a hilarious, butt-kicking new chapter in DreamWorks Animation’s beloved action-comedy franchise: Kung Fu Panda 4. After three death-defying adventures defeating world-class villains with his unmatched courage and mad martial arts skills, Po, the Dragon Warrior (Golden Globe nominee Jack Black), is called upon by destiny to … give it a rest already. More specifically, he’s tapped to become the Spiritual Leader of the Valley of Peace. That poses a couple of obvious problems. First, Po knows as much about spiritual leadership as he does about the paleo diet, and second, he needs to quickly find and train a new Dragon Warrior before he can assume his new lofty position. Even worse, there’s been a recent sighting of a wicked, powerful sorceress, Chameleon (Oscar® winner Viola Davis), a tiny lizard who can shapeshift into any creature, large or small. And Chameleon has her greedy, beady little eyes on Po’s Staff of Wisdom, which would give her the power to re-summon all the master villains whom Po has vanquished to the spirit realm. So, Po’s going to need some help. He finds it (kinda?) in the form of crafty, quick-witted thief Zhen (Golden Globe winner Awkwafina), a corsac fox who really gets under Po’s fur but whose skills will prove invaluable. In their quest to protect the Valley of Peace from Chameleon’s reptilian claws, this comedic odd-couple duo will have to work together. In the process, Po will discover that heroes can be found in the most unexpected places.
“Kung Fu Panda 4” is slated to hit theaters March 8th, 2024. Check out the trailer below:
