"Kung Fu Panda 3" co-director, Jennifer Yuh Nelson revealed that the upcoming animated martial arts film will feature a "supernatural, bigger, and more intimidating" villain. The titular hero is set to fight Kai the bull which will be voiced by award-winning J.K. Simmons.
After defeating Shen, the peacock who slaughtered pandas in "Kung Fu Panda 2", the black and white hero will be tested anew. Co-director Jennifer Yuh Nelson has shed a few details about the new kind of animal that Po will face in his third go-around. "He's somebody that's beyond Tai Lung, beyond Shen,"she said of the villainous Kai, whose character was already revealed last month.
The new antagonist has large horns, leather armor, and uses two jade swords with chains attached as his go-to weapon. "He's a villain that Po is completely ill-equipped to face," Nelson teased. The big bad bull is said to be notable for his supernatural powers. According to Latin Post, the concept of supernaturalism was intended to distinguish the character from its predecessors. "And it was like 'You can't go brawler because Tai Lung was brawler. You can't go smarter because Shen was smarter," she explained. " Where can you go? You have to go supernatural, bigger, and even more intimidating."
Though intimidating, Nelson also assured that there will be laughs in the introduction of his character to avoid scaring the kids out of the theater. Kai will be voiced by the award-winning actor J.K. Simmons. The 60-year-old actor is best known for his roles in the "Law & Order" series, the "Spider-Man" trilogy, and the acclaimed film "Whiplash". His voice acting credits include "Megamind", "Cats & Dogs: The Revenge of Kitty Galore", and "Aliens at the Attic".
Simmons now joins the cast that includes Jack Black (Po), Dustin Hoffman (Master Shifu), Angelina Jolie (Tigress), Jackie Chan (Monkey), Seth Rogen (Mantis), David Cross (Crane) and Lucy Liu (Viper).
"Kung Fu Panda 3" will be released on Jan. 29, 2016.
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