The Kung Fu Panda franchise has been on the rise since 2008, and the Kung Fu Panda movie trilogy has been so successful that it’s hard to rank them. The martial arts-inspired animated story of Po, the titular Kung Fu Panda, has been something of a sleeper hit. Although they were dismissed by some as another soulless big-budget CGI kids movie from the 00s when the first film was released, Kung Fu Panda and the sequels pack a lot of heart. The motley all-star cast that includes Jack Black, Angelina Jolie, Lucy Liu, Jackie Chan and Dustin Hoffman looks mismatched in any other setting. However, in Kung Fu Panda, the actors play each other perfectly. Po, Shifu, Oogway, and the Furious Five have become Dreamworks favorites, and it’s thanks to each Kung Fu Panda sequel that’s a solid entry. Over time, the Kung Fu Panda films have rightly gained the recognition they deserve, so much so that Kung Fu Panda 4 is on the way in 2024 – some 16 years since Kung Fu Panda was released in 2008.
Po’s adventures in China were so popular and culturally accurate that they caused the Chinese film industry to stop and reflect on the quality of its production. Chinese director Lu Chuan said of Kung Fu Panda in 2008, “I can’t help but wonder when China will be able to produce a movie of this caliber” (via Reuters). In a world where Western interpretations of other cultures in film so often fall flat, Kung Fu Panda remains the pinnacle of international cultural appreciation done right. There have been three Kung Fu Panda movies so far, with Kung Fu Panda 4 slated for release in 2024. There have also been numerous TV spinoffs and tie-ins. Although it didn’t have the initial cultural impact of Shrek or Madagascar, the Kung Fu Panda fandom grew significantly in size and passion, setting it up as a possible tentpole franchise for the future of DreamWork. However, not all Kung Fu Panda movies are created equal. It’s hard to compare entries in this incredibly solid trilogy, but there’s one definite winner when it comes to competing for the title of Best Kung Fu Panda Movie. Here are all the Kung Fu Panda movies ranked.
3.Kung Fu Panda 2
Sequels often serve as a turning point for a franchise. So when Black’s Po, Hoffman’s Master Shifu and the star-studded Furious Five returned in 2011, there were high expectations. A commercially successful sequel bodes well for the potential for a lucrative film series, while a flop spells doom and often means major losses for the production house that backed it. Kung Fu Panda 2 happily falls into the former category, serving as a darker continuation of the Furious Five and Po’s story in Kung Fu Panda. The film takes a stark view of the status of endangered pandas and explains two giant questions that plagued the first film: why is Po the only panda viewers have seen, and why is he being raised by a goose?
Kung Fu Panda 2 features most of the cast from the first film but also introduces many new characters. Notably, Kung Fu Panda 2 cameos Jean-Claude Van Damme as Master Croc and Gary Oldman as the villainous Peacock Shen. It opens with the rulers of Gongmen City, a family of peacocks who invented fireworks. Unfortunately, fireworks also mean access to deadly gunpowder. The family’s only son, Oldman’s Shen, in a frantic reaction to a prophecy that he will be defeated by a black and white warrior, uses gunpowder to hunt pandas in a genocidal fashion. In the midst of it all, Po was rescued by his late mother, who put him away in a shipment of radishes for Mr. Ping (James Hone, who also starred in Turning Red) to find him eventually. It’s a natural continuation of the first Kung Fu Panda and sets the stage for Kung Fu Panda 3, but lacks the widespread character and global development that separates good sequels from great sequels. Essentially, Kung Fu Panda 2 functions as the franchise’s middle child: a welcome addition, but frankly a bit forgettable.
2.Kung Fu Panda 3
Few franchises can boast of having a third film like Kung Fu Panda 3. This film recalls all the major plot points present in Kung Fu Panda and Kung Fu Panda 2 and even features Oogway’s surprise appearance in the spirit realm. The cast of Kung Fu Panda 3 also takes the franchise’s star power to the next level: Breaking Bad star Bryan Cranston and JK Simmons join the roster of stars lending their voices to the franchise, with Cranston playing Po’s father Li Shan. , and Simmons portraying that film’s villain, Kai the Yak Spirit Warrior.
In this film, Po finally meets his long-lost father, Li Shan, after viewers get a quick glimpse of him at the very end of Kung Fu Panda 2. What follows is a heartwarming journey of family, friendship, and inheritance. This film also reintroduces the concept of Kung Fu Panda’s Chi, a source of power that resides within every warrior and has the potential to unleash their inner dragon. The film includes a touching moment of father-to-father advice. When Po scolds his father for lying about pandas’ ability to still harness their Chi, adoptive father Mr. Ping explains to Li Shan (a pleasant return to comedy for Bryan Cranston after so long since he played Hal in Malcolm in the Middle) that Po getting upset and frustrated with him is just part of being a parent. This leads Li Shan to promise that his clan will help him in the fight against Kai and apologizes to Po, who in turn begins to train the pandas to turn their daily duties into kung fu. Eventually, Po manages to defeat Kai not by his own strength and willpower, but with the combined efforts (and Chi) of all of his family and friends.
1.Kung Fu Panda
Typically, the first film in a franchise is hard to top in terms of quality, originality, and heart. The original Kung Fu Panda movie is no exception and arguably helped DreamWorks regain its momentum after the release of the bizarre Bee Movie and disappointing Shrek The Third in 2007. The inaugural film in the Kung Fu Panda series fueled by whimsical and inspired by wuxia is full of hope, nuance and originality.
At first, Po is a goofy kung fu superfan who still lives with his father. Frankly, he’s the last person in the Kung Fu Panda universe that Master Shifu and the Furious Five would expect to be the Dragon Warrior. Still, as the film progresses, Po’s inner strength, kind heart, and determination prove he’s worthy of the title. Po develops a new style of Kung Fu that is unique to his strengths, adding a message of body positivity and self-love to this family film. This – and the Bruce Lee connection – is the heart and soul of Kung Fu Panda. Kung Fu Panda’s message not only encourages tolerance of differences, it also shows how celebrating and nurturing those differences can benefit the whole community. The Kung Fu Panda franchise revitalized the animation genre in the late 2000s and early 2010s. Since then, the series has remained true to a core ideal: believing in yourself makes anything possible.
What about Kung Fu Panda TV shows?
There have been many Kung Fu Panda TV spinoffs and tie-ins over the years. Kung Fu Panda: Legends of Awesomeness aired on Nickelodeon from 2011 to 2016. It received a slew of awards, introduced a ton of new characters, and had a catchy Saturday morning cartoon theme song for Po. the adventures of the Dragon Warrior and the Furious Five between Kung Fu Panda and Kung Fu Panda 2. Next came Kung Fu Panda: The Paws Of Destiny on Amazon Prime in 2018. Paws of Destiny released a second season in 2019 and was set after Kung Fu Panda 3. It details Po training a new generation of Chi-powered panda warriors. It wasn’t as well received as Legends of Awesomeness, although many fans enjoyed the serialized narrative that unfolded throughout.
Finally, in 2022, Netflix released Kung Fu Panda: The Dragon Knight. The latest entry takes place a few years after Paws of Destiny in the Kung-Fu Panda canon and is notable both for Jack Black voicing Po on a TV show for the first time and for showing countries outside of China as the Dragon Warrior crosses the world. Additionally, several short films have been released over the years on various platforms, including Netflix, which build on the established lore of Kung Fu Panda. These have varying animation styles and are mostly used to add backstory to the Furious Five and the historical Kung Fu masters that Po idolizes. These include Secrets of the Furious Five from 2008, Kung Fu Panda Holiday from 2010, Secrets of the Masters from 2011, and Secrets of the Scroll from 2016.
What we know about Kung Fu Panda 4
Six years after Kung Fu Panda 3 in 2016, the Disney fighting studio behind Shrek, DreamWorks, has announced that Kung Fu Panda 4 has a March 8, 2024 release date. There has been no news other than confirmation. of the release date. However, some relatively safe assumptions can be made. Jack Black, for example, will almost certainly return as Po after his recent vocal performance in Kung Fu Panda: The Dragon Knight showed he’s not done with the character. No news on the rest of the cast, but since core members like Dustin Hoffman and Angelina Jolie have remained with the franchise throughout the trilogy, it’s likely they’ll be back too. The story of Kung Fu Panda 4 remains a total mystery. Since this is an original IP and not an adaptation, DreamWorks could point it in any direction, and the central conceit of talking animals doing Kung Fu a la Bruce Lee is so open that literally anything is possible when Po, Shifu, and the Furious Five return in 2024 for the new Kung Fu Panda movie.
Every Kung Fu Panda Movie Ranked From Worst To Best | Pretty Reel