Paddington is set to continue his adventures on screens big and small, as StudioCanal plans a Paddington 4 film and a television series.
It is almost a cliche by now to say that Paddington 2 is quite possibly one of the greatest family comedies ever made. In the words of Nicolas Cage in The Unbearable Weight Of Massive Talent, “Paddington 2 is incredible”. It’s one of the few films that really does live up to the hype, with Paul King’s direction and the screenplay he co-wrote with Simon Farnaby coalescing into one of the most wholesome, funny films in years.
That is quite a legacy to live up to, and we don’t have long to wait either – Paddington In Peru hits UK cinemas on the 8th November. King and Farnaby stayed on to co-write the story with Mark Burton, while the latter co-wrote the screenplay with Jon Foster and James Lamont. Dougal Wilson is directing. Ben Whishaw reprises the title role, alongside returning stars Hugh Bonneville, Madeline Harris and Samuel Joslin as The Brown Family, with Emily Mortimer replacing Sally Hawkins as Mrs Brown, with Julie Walters also returning as Mrs Bird. Jim Broadbent is playing Samuel Gruber, Olivia Colman is playing The Reverand Mother and Antonio Banderas is playing Hunter Cabot.
Podcast: Paddington 2 (2017) and Mrs Doubtfire (1993)
We’re as excited as anyone about revisiting the world of Paddington, and it seems StudioCanal feels the same way, as it’s have been chatting about the future of the franchise. In news that will surprise nobody given the critical and commercial success of the films thus far, development has already begun on Paddington 4, and there are also plans to bring Paddington to the small screen.
According to The Hollywood Reporter, Françoise Guyonnet and Sissel Henno, a pair of higher-up business boss types at StudioCanal, said at a recent event that the studio is planning the “ongoing journey of Paddington from a classic character to a worldwide cultural phenomenon. We are also working on a new TV series and a new movie to come in 2027, ’28.”
Michael Bond’s first Paddington story celebrates its 70th anniversary in 2028.
We’ll keep you updated as we hear more on Paddington 4 and his other exploits.
