What is it about an often-hungry and kind of lazy panda who is obsessed with kung fu that has resonated with audiences worldwide?
The Kung Fu Panda franchise — now 16 years old and four films in — centers on Po (Jack Black) who, along with his friends (voiced by a star-studded cast including Angelina Jolie, Lucy Liu, Seth Rogan and Jackie Chan), goes on adventures spanning the mystical and spiritual.
"I think people love pandas and people love kung fu, and we've got a combination," Black tells ABC News.
"The art is so great, I think we've got the best animators in the world. It's kind of like a dance between the voice acting, and these animators who've completed the performance."
For those who haven't seen the films, Po is the designated "Dragon Warrior", a kind of legendary Chosen One who can wield limitless power.
The first film focused on him figuring out who he wanted to be; he discovered more about his parents in the sequel, Kung Fu Panda 2; while Kung Fu Panda 3 saw him begin to pass on his skills to a new generation of panda cubs.
In the latest film, Master Shifu (Dustin Hoffman) wants Po to become the new Spiritual Leader of the Valley of the Peace, so Po must choose and anoint someone else as the new Dragon Warrior.
While Jolie, Chan and Liu don't return for this film, Bryan Cranston and James Hong reprise their roles as Po's dads. And rapper and actor Awkwafina joins the cast as Zhen, a fox burglar who crosses paths with Po during one of her thieving sprees.
When a shape-shifting sorcerer known as the Chameleon (Viola Davis) and her criminal network make themselves known, Po and Zhen team up to prevent her from getting her hands on the panda's staff of wisdom (which the Chameleon plans to use to summon Po's enemies back from the spirit realm).
"Zhen and Po are like the odd couple of the kung fu world, and it was exciting to explore their differences and watch them grow together," says Awkwafina.
"Zhen brings this scrappy, streetwise energy to the story, challenging Po in unexpected ways."
A mix of East and West
The humour and story of Kung Fu Panda is a part of why the films havecharmed audiences globally.
The film series has also proven to be a massive hit in China, a highly lucrative but notoriously difficult market for Hollywood films to succeed in,because of limits the country places on foreign and Western films.
Plot threads often blend aspects of South-East Asian culture, like filial piety and duty to family, with more universal themes of working with others and having the confidence to forge your own path.
Awkwafina says it has meant a lot to her to see the franchise pay homage to Chinese culture.
"I think when [Kung Fu Panda] first came out, there wasn't a lot of movies that really took place [there], exemplifying those cultural traditions in that world," she says.
"So I'm really proud that it existed and to be a part of it now."
Black adds: "You know, any community that feels under-represented, one of the greatest ways to open up the stories to the world is to get creative.
"The ones that you've never heard before are often the most amazing ones."
The latest Kung Fu Panda also comes off the back of other successful animated films like Turning Red and Elemental, which explored similar themes of responsibility and loyalty, and growing up as part of an immigrant family.
"Those I really enjoyed, and I love Kung Fu Panda because they explore what it means to be a kid, have anxiety and what it means to be human I think in a way that's really unique," says Awkwafina.
"And I [want to] just continue watching stories that do that."
Into the future
Both actors say they related to the simple central message — to believe in yourself — that plays out across all the films.
"I definitely can think about certain times in my life, in my career, where I didn't believe in myself," Black says.
"Someone else gave me confidence and believed in me, and then I was able to push through my insecurities, and those moments and those people who gave me that strength mean so much to me, so I relate to it in that way."
Awkwafina adds, "I think it's hard to know when you're doing something right. It's hard to believe in yourself and Jack is right. It does take people to have to help you sometimes."
In terms of their characters' futures, Awkwafina says she wants Po and Zhen to "live, laugh, love".
"I'd like to see Po get even more spiritual," says Black.
"To somehow master the art of meditation and be able to create some inner peace."
Awkwafina jokingly adds: "I want to stop stealing, and we enter a program."
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Kung Fu Panda 4 is in cinemas now.
