Kung Fu Panda 4 is already shaping up to be a major box office hit after beating one The Super Mario Bros. Movie stat. After taking eight years off between movies, the Kung Fu Panda franchise is finally returning in 2024 and hoping to be the latest animated movie to find success in theaters. 2023 included several major success stories for animated movies, with The Super Mario Bros. Movie leading the way in that regard. Illumination and Nintendo’s animated movie, which also features Kung Fu Panda 4 cast star Jack Black in a voice role, made over $1.4 billion worldwide.
The heights of The Super Mario Bros. Movie’s box office shows just how good Kung Fu Panda 4’s release could be if everything goes right. DreamWorks turned the series into a $1.8 billion franchise over the course of the original trilogy, so expectations are high for what Jack Black’s return as Po could do. Since both movies come from Universal, albeit from two different animation studios, comparing The Super Mario Bros. Movie and Kung Fu Panda 4 becomes a bit more natural. And Universal should be hopeful for the latter based on a surprising stat.