Why were the Furious Five not a part of Kung Fu Panda 4? Explained

The fourth installment in the beloved Kung Fu Panda franchise has arrived, and it has fulfilled all the expectations that were set in stone before its premiere. Apart from already becoming a box office cannon on its way to immediate success, the fourth film chronicling Po's (played by Jack Black) journey has also received praise from critics around the world.

Though the majority of the film did have the same theme and followed the same character, Kung Fu Panda 4 did ditch the fan-favorite quintet, popularly known as the Furious Five. The Furious Five has been a part of the universe since the very start of the franchise and has played a crucial role in all three films that came before.

However, for this part, the Furious Five, made up of Tigress (Angelina Jolie), Monkey (Jackie Chan), Crane (David Cross), Viper (Lucy Liu), and Mantis (Seth Rogen), only appeared in one final sequence.

According to the director, Mike Mitchell, who explained it to The Direct, this was done to make more space for other characters while also expanding the universe beyond the familiar realm that we have seen till now.

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Director Mike Mitchell reportedly dropped the Furious Five from Kung Fu Panda 4 because it started to "get really crowded"

While the five characters did make up for some of the most exciting scenes in the trilogy that came before Kung Fu Panda 4, there were also many new characters introduced over this course of time, making the story much richer, and taking up more space in the plot.

Moreover, since it was only a one-and-a-half-hour film, taking Po out of the Valley of Peace needed more room in the story. Mike Mitchell explained to The Direct:

"Well, you know, it's a part four, and we wanted to expand the world, and we wanted to take Po out of the Valley of Peace for the first time. And already, we're inheriting a great cast. Dustin Hoffman, as Shifu, has to come along. Definitely, James Hong, as his dad, Mr. Ping, he's a must In my mind. I'm a super fan. He's got to be there. And then Bryan Cranston is such a great combo platter as the new dad that was introduced as Li in the last film. So it starts to get really crowded."

However, the director did not omit the quintet entirely from Kung Fu Panda 4. All of them were brought back in a sequence at the end of the film, hinting that if the franchise continues, there is always room to bring the famous warriors back.

Mitchell added:

"We just really wanted to expand the world and bring in new characters without getting crowded. And then, at the same time, we felt that we gave the diehard Furious Five fans—I love the Furious Five—a taste of things to come at the end of our film… But you know, we give them a taste of what they're off doing. And then a taste of, like, they're going to be back."

While it remains a mystery whether Kung Fu Panda 5 will be a thing in the future, the director has refused to answer it in any way.

As of now, Kung Fu Panda 4 has earned $55M on its opening weekend already.