Along with Bryan Cranston, Mads Mikkelsen and Rebel Wilson, new actors have joined the cast of the upcoming Kung Fu Panda 3. Details of the characters have emerged on website Rotoscopers.
Bryan will voice Po’s biological father, while Mads and Rebel will voice characters named Mei Mei and The Collector respectively. The best supporting actor at Oscars 2015 – J.K Simmons – will also be voicing a character in the project. DreamWorks’s storyboard artist Phil Craven recently posted an Instagram photo of the actor in a recording booth during a session for the film. However, it’s unclear which character he will be voicing.
The official synopsis has also been unveiled by DreamWorks Animation UK director of hardlines Nick Cooke. In an article for a British toy magazine called Toy World, he wrote, “Po continues his now legendary adventures of awesomeness and must face two, hugely epic, but very different threads. Po has saved the world countless times, but none of that has prepared him for his greatest challenge yet – pleasing 2 fathers.”
“Po reunites with his biological father and returns to his birthplace, yet soon realises he doesn’t fit in. There he meets the overly eager Mei Mei, who is also supposedly promised an alliance with Po. Po must also battle an evil spirit called The Collector, who is able to steal the powers of every Kung Fu Master he defeats – and his sights are set on Po,” he added.
The website has also obtained some leaked pictures showing the designs of the new characters of Mei Mei, The Collector and a little panda named Bao who looks like a younger version of Po.
According to some fans on Tumblr who went to an early screening of DreamWorks’ Home (2015), a new Kung Fu Panda 3 teaser trailer would be played in front of it later this month.
Kung Fu Panda 3 is now scheduled to hit theatres in the US on 18 March, 2016 after being pushed back from its original 23 December release date.
