With the news of the fourth installment of Kung Fu Panda to be released next year, there is another sensational film franchise that shall give tough competition in 2024.

As 2023 comes to a wrap, it is worth stating that it was a good Hollywood year. With significant box-office hits like Barbie, The Super Mario Bros. Movie, and Oppenheimer in the top three, the first two were the only ones that could hit the billion-dollar mark. On the other hand, the discussion on the biggest blockbuster hits for 2024 has already begun. However, as per The Direct, 2024 shall see more franchise sequels hitting the theatres.

The massively popular Kung Fu Panda film series will release its fourth installment, Kung Fu Panda 4 in early March next year. Already creating much buzz, there is another blockbuster franchise that is expected to overrun Kung Fu Panda’s potential. Despite its star-studded cast with Angeline Jolie and Jackie Chan, Kung Fu Panda can’t win the race against Gru’s army of minions in Despicable Me 4. 

The minions will take over 2024

Pierre Coffin as Stuart, Bob, and Kevin in Minions: The Rise of Gru
Universal Studios’ minions are expected to rule the movie theatres after a 7 year long hiatus with Despicable Me 4. Thus, as per speculations, the fourth installment of the film series shall hit the billion-dollar mark next year. Whereas giving competition, the Mike Mitchell-led film has been predicted to gross $600 million globally, as per a report by The Direct.

While that is still an impressive number, Chris Renaud and Patrick Delage’s Despicable Me 4 is expected to make $1.1 billion. In Kung Fu Panda 4, Angelina Jolie will voice the Tigress, Jackie Chan as the Money, Jack Black as Po, and Seth Rogan will lend his vocal cords to Mantis, along with other many popular actors, per IMDb.

The clash of the blockbusters

Po from Kung Fu Panda
Fortunately, the release dates are wide apart for the two great films. Despicable Me 4 is scheduled to hit theatres on July 3, 2024, whereas Kung Fu Panda fans will witness the hilarious panda’s quests early in the year, that is, on 8th March 2024.

Speaking of the cast for Despicable Me 4, franchise veteran, Steve Carell will voice Gru, Kristen Wiig as Lucy, and Miranda Cosgrove as Mago Gru, in addition to many other notable voice actors. The latest installment of the franchise was released in 2017. Despicable Me 3 also collected $1 billion globally. With an approximate franchise collection of $4 billion, per Box Office Mojo, there is little hope that Kung Fu Panda 4 may swoop over the minions.

The Kung Fu Panda films haven’t crossed the $600 million mark until now, with the third installment grossing $521 million, per The Numbers. Thus, the same is expected for the fourth installment, although, who knows what the future holds. Additionally, as per the report, Marvel’s Deadpool 3 shall top the list of 2024 blockbusters with a global box-office prediction of $1.2 billion. The Ryan Reynolds-starrer will be the third installment of the Deadpool franchise, after its latest one in 2018. Seems like 2024 holds more surprises than 2023.