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Much like her debut character in Kung Fu Panda 3, Kate Hudson commanded the room as she walked in sporting a Lakers’ shirt neatly tucked into a pink pencil skirt. Best known for her role as Penny Lane in Almost Famous, the Golden Globe Award winner and Academy Award-nominated actress makes her inaugural entrance into animation as the voice of Mei Mei. Confident, captivating, and audacious, Mei Mei is the first female panda Dragon Warrior Po has ever seen…and he isn’t quite sure what to make of her.
This January, DreamWorks Animation will release the third installment in the Kung Fu Panda film series. In his biggest adventure to date, Po will reunite with his biological father, unlock the secret of the chi, and find out who he really is. Kung Fu Panda 3 stars the voice talents of Jack Black, Angelina Jolie Pitt, Dustin Hoffman, Lucy Liu, Jackie Chan and Seth Rogen in an exciting, visually immersive film that will engage and surprise audiences.
When Po travels to the elusive panda paradise, he immediately encounters Mei Mei. She’s beautiful and self-assured, just like Hudson, who infuses her own unique personality into her character. During a recent interview, Kate Hudson shared her perspective on the latest film and how her character inspires both boys and girls.
As a mom of 2 boys, Hudson approached the project having some familiarity with the Kung Fu Panda films. “What I love about this one is that it just feels like a heightened, grander experience.” The visual beauty of the film is complimented by its heart and humor. According to Hudson, Kung Fu Panda 3 is “a real coming-of-age story,” where Po learns who he really is and “connects to his true nature.” “I think [there will be] a lot of children out there who are going to relate…to empathize with what that must feel like.”
The backstory behind Mei Mei is that she was promised to Po through an arranged marriage when they were children. But having been raised in a Chinese village by swan goose Mr. Ping, Po has never seen a female Panda before. When Po encounters Mei Mei for the first time, “he doesn’t know what hit him.” As an aspiring ribbon dancer, Mei Mei exudes confidence, something Hudson aspires towards. “You just don’t even think about what anybody thinks,” muses Hudson. Mei Mei is so confident in herself that she “spins it in her head that [Po] is completely obsessed with her.” Always performing, Hudson came to realize that Mei Mei is totally unapologetic. “Wouldn’t it be nice if we all had that kind of confidence?”
Throughout the film, we see Mei Mei’s character evolve into a warrior, tenacious yet absolutely feminine. A role model for young girls, Hudson also believes her character can help teach young boys how to treat women, as she is doing with her own sons. She teaches her boys that respect for women is unequivocal. With a shift in how boys are being raised today, Hudson surmises that our younger generation is comprised of “very strong mothers,” a dynamic that is present in her household and becoming increasingly prevalent in our society today.
See Mei Mei wield her alluring ribbons and combat nunchucks in Kung Fu Panda 3, which debuts in theaters January 29th, 2016.
Keep up to date with Kung Fu Panda 3 via the film’s respective social media channels:
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