Kung Fu Panda 4 Box Office Punching Towards $55 Million

Kung Fu Panda 4 is kicking into gear at the box office with $19.4 million combining opening day and preview screenings. Jack Black's animated franchise hasn't achieved that kind of start since the first movie back in 2008. (It notched $20 back then and notched a massive $60 million opening weekend.) Kung Fu Panda 4 probably won't get there, but it will come close as observers have the new movie pegged for around $55 million over the next couple of days. If it can ascend to that number, Kung Fu Panda 4 would beat out the second and third movies in its own franchise. (That's $47 million and $41 million respectively!) There's a lot to smile about if you're DreamWorks Animation.

Dune: Part Two will likely come in second, but that's not exactly a bad thing. The Timothee Chalamet vehicle brought in $12 million on Friday. However, the exceptional word of mouth around the science fiction epic is going to keep this one around for a while. That plus the absolutely staggering IMAX numbers for Denis Villeneuve's new movie make it a worthy adversary for Po this weekend. The theater environment has been hot and cold the last two years. However, when the people show up, it can feel a little bit like the hot years of 2018 and 2019.

What's Different With Kung Fu Panda 4?

With Kung Fu Panda 4 representing a moment of reflection for Po and really the franchise as a whole, the story had to be up to snuff. Director Mike Mitchell told ComicBook.com about the process of developing Kung Fu Panda 4. Po's coming full circle in this one and fans approve.

"When I was producing the third film, we're like, 'Wow, we're really wrapping up.' And so for this one, probably why it took so long to get to the big screen is we didn't start on this until we are sure we had the right story," Mitchell explained. "It's all about finding that perfect story. We don't want to just tell another one. It's got to be something that evolves Po and Po has got to learn something he's got to really advance to the next level."

"If you remember, in the previous film, he had already gotten to the top. He did it. He's the Dragon Warrior," the director added. "That's what he wanted, who knew in part one he could achieve all this? So for this one we thought, what if we took all that away? How would you feel? And within that we found some really great themes, some really heavy themes that we thought were important for this day and age."

What Is Kung Fu Panda 4 About?

DreamWorks dropped a synopsis for the movie: "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." 

Are you heading to the movies this weekend? Let us know in the comments down below!