'Kung Fu Panda 4' Takes Over Theaters
by EG
Hollywood is finally finding success at the 2024 box office, and sequels are leading the way. This weekend, the latest installment in a long-running animated franchise, Kung Fu Panda 4, debuted at the top of the box office charts. Last week's top movie, Dune: Part Two, also continued to do strong business. The two strong debuts have been the only truly successful theatrical releases so far in a year that is already almost a quarter over. Read on for details.
Jack Black‘s Po is back after nearly a decade, and he’s already receiving a hero’s welcome from audiences.
Kung Fu Panda 4 opened to a stellar $58.3 million domestically, well ahead of expectations and a near-series best in a win for the family marketplace, as well as for DreamWorks Animation and parent company Universal (the studio behind Sunday’s Academy Awards frontrunner Oppenheimer). The only other Kung Fu Panda installment to open higher was the first one in 2008 with $62 million, not adjusted for inflation.
Along with Black, returning members of the Kung Fu Panda 4 voice cast include Dustin Hoffman as Kung Fu master Shifu, James Hong as Po’s adoptive father, Bryan Cranston as Po’s birth father Li and Ian McShane as Shifu’s former student and arch-nemesis.
Series newcomers include Viola Davis as a tiny lizard and shapeshifting sorceress and Awakawfina as a quick-witted thief whom Po needs in order to protect their world. Ke Huy Quan also joins the franchise as a criminal leader named Han. The film boasts an A- CinemaScore from audiences and strong PostTrak exits.
Kung Fu Panda 4 is directed by Mike Mitchell, who also helmed Trolls and Shrek Forever After.
All eyes are also on Denis Villeneueve’s Dune: Part Two to see how it holds up in its second outing. The Legendary and Warner Bros. sci-fi epic opened last weekend to a stellar $82.5 million domestically and finished Thursday with a North American tally of more than $110 million and $200 million globally.
Heading in into Oscar weekend, box office pundits believed Dune 2 could earn $40 million or so in its second outing; it earned $46 million, thanks in part to keen demand for higher-priced Imax and other premium large-format screens. Overseas, its foreign tally hit $210 million after landing in China. The estimated global cume is $376.5 million.
Get the rest of the story at The Hollywood Reporter.