Kung Fu Panda 4’ Kicks Off a Global Box Office Hit, Surpassing $500M Milestone

The fourth installment of the beloved franchise reached this milestone this past weekend, aided by a strategic staggered release. As of Wednesday, Kung Fu Panda 4 has earned $324 million internationally, pushing its total global haul to $509 million.

Directed by Mike Mitchell, with Stephanie Ma Stine serving as co-director, the latest film in the Kung Fu Panda series arrived nearly a decade after its predecessor, Kung Fu Panda 3, which premiered in 2016. With this success, the Kung Fu Panda franchise has now grossed over $2.3 billion globally, making it the second-highest-grossing franchise for DreamWorks Animation, only behind Shrek.

Margie Cohn, President of DreamWorks Animation, spoke to Deadline about the secret to the franchise’s enduring success. "Kung Fu Panda is beloved IP with established characters and a rich world," she said. "The challenge, especially after three films, is finding the right story, assembling the right creative team, and offering audiences something they love while also giving them a fresh experience. If you’re not doing that, we believe audiences won’t show up."

Kung Fu Panda 4 has achieved a rare feat for the franchise by securing the highest audience score on Rotten Tomatoes to date. The film introduces new characters, including Po’s (voiced by Jack Black) new partner, Zhen (voiced by Awkwafina), and features the first-ever female villain in the series, The Chameleon, voiced by Viola Davis. Cohn credits the film’s success to the strong collaboration between the creative team and Mitchell’s direction. “Mike Mitchell is an experienced filmmaker who understands what it takes to elevate a beloved franchise and bring it to a wider audience,” she added.