See Awkwafina Bring Zhen To Life In Kung Fu Panda 4 Behind-The-Scenes Clip

Summary Screen Rant presents a behind-the-scenes clip from Kung Fo Panda 4.

The clip focuses on Awkwafina's turn as Zhen, a new corsac fox character.

Zhen brins new abilities to the franchise, which has long exaggerated real-life animal skills into imaginative powers.

Kung Fu Panda 4 is a winning continuation of the long-running film franchise, and Screen Rant has a behind-the-scenes clip detailing the creation of one of its key new characters. The movie still follows Jack Black’s Po, the unlikely Dragon Warrior, but introduces the character of Zhen, a corsac fox, who teams up with the panda on a quest to discover why villains from the past seem to have reappeared. At the same time, Po is tasked with finding a new hero to take over the mantle of Dragon Warrior.

Screen Rant is happy to present a behind-the-scenes look at key Kung Fu Panda 4 cast member Awkwafina as the new character Zhen. The clip also details the amount of work that went into bringing Zhen to life on the VFX side and shows the care the filmmakers took in ensuring the character seamlessly fit the movie’s world. Enjoy the clip and get ready to watch Kung Fu Panda 4 at home—the movie is available now on digital, DVD, and Blu-ray.

Why Awkwafina’s Zhen Is A Smart Addition To Kung Fu Panda 4

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Screen Rant’s Kung Fu Panda 4 review praised the movie for its villain, animation, and how the character of Zhen played into Po’s emotional journey. In a way, Zhen is the perfect addition to the film on that final front, as she is one of the only characters in the movie to not know—or respect—the fact that Po is the Dragon Warrior. With longtime franchise characters like Master Shifu and the Furious Five no longer doubting Po’s ability to save the world, the panda was in need of a new foil like Zhen in Kung Fu Panda 4.

The franchise is also known for the unique way it reimagines animal skills as martial art and mystical abilities. Kung Fu Panda 4’s chameleon is an especially strong example of this, but Zhen’s agility and quick thinking bring a fresh new skill set to the Kung Fu Panda universe. Even though many animals have been realized in the world already, the filmmakers have managed to create visually exciting new sequences based on the imagined abilities of the corsac fox. It helps bring the franchise forward and offer something the previous three films didn’t.

The largest question after the movie's ending is if and how Zhen will blend with other key supporting characters. Those expecting a Furious Five return in Kung Fu Panda 4 may have left the movie a little disappointed, but Zhen fills the gap left by those characters. Ideally, the corsac fox will meet Mantis, Tiger, Snake, Crane, and Monkey in a Kung Fu Panda 5—hopefully, it will take fewer than the 8 years between Kung Fu Panda 3 and 4 for this to happen.