Kung Fu Panda is a
2008 American animated comedy film. It was directed by John Stevenson and
Mark Osborne and produced by Melissa Cobb. The film was produced by
DreamWorks Animation's studio in
Glendale, California and distributed by
Paramount Pictures. The film stars the voices of
Jack Black as the panda, Po, along with
Jackie Chan,
Dustin Hoffman,
Angelina Jolie,
Lucy Liu,
Seth Rogen,
David Cross, and
Ian McShane. Set in ancient China, the plot revolves around a bumbling panda who aspires to be a
kung fu master. After a much feared warrior escapes from prison, Po is foretold to be the Dragon Warrior, much to the chagrin of the resident kung fu warriors. Dreamworks is working on a sequel to
Kung Fu Panda, which is currently in pre-production.
Although the concept of a "kung fu panda" has been around since at least 1993,
the idea for the film was conceived by Michael Lachance,
a
DreamWorks Animation executive. Work on the film did not begin until 2004. The film was originally intended to be a parody, but director Stevenson decided to instead shoot a
action comedy martial arts film that incorporates the
hero's journey narrative archetype for the lead character. The computer animation in the film was more complex than anything DreamWorks had done before. As with most DreamWorks animated films,
Hans Zimmer scored
Kung Fu Panda. He visited China to absorb the culture and get to know the
China National Symphony Orchestra as part of his preparation.
Kung Fu Panda premiered in the United States on June 1, 2008, and has since received very favorable reviews from critics. The film currently garners an 89% "Certified Fresh" approval rating from review aggregator
Rotten Tomatoes.
Kung Fu Panda opened in 4,114 theaters, grossing $20.3 million on its opening day and $60.2 million on its opening weekend, resulting in the number one position at the box office. The film has resulted in DreamWorks' biggest opening for a non-sequel film, and the third-largest weekend overall for a DreamWorks animated film, behind
Shrek the Third and
Shrek 2.