Kung Fu Panda 4
EST V ACT domestic box office revenue
$130 – 177MM V $194MM
Mythosis universal quests used
3
Audience appeal
3.41 – 4.73%
Hidden potential
$325 – 365MM
Kung Fu Panda 4, the latest movie from DreamWorks Animation, is a story about the dragon warrior teaming up with a bandit fox to take on the challenge of an evil sorceress. The plot structure of Kung Fu Panda 4 interweaves the quest of Prometheus with the familiar conflict of Circe and Odysseus.
1. The invisible plot structure of Kung Fu Panda 4
1A. The script of Kung Fu Panda 4 borrows 85% of its events from 3 mythological tales
Po’s quest mirrors the tale of Odysseus from Greek mythology, where both are driven by the desire to be secure surroundings.
The Chameleon’s quest mirrors the tale of Circe from Greek mythology, where both are driven by the desire to dominate others.
Zhen’s quest mirrors the tale of Prometheus from Greek mythology, where both are driven by the desire for fairness and justice.
NOTE: Detailed mirroring of each character’s primary quest to their respective mythological tales is in section “3A. Quests of characters and their mythological counterparts”
Mythosis plot structure
# 18,616
Tales interweaved
Circe, Odysseus & Prometheus
I. How does interweaving mythological tales lead to infinite story plots?
II. Can the pursuit of a Desire have more than one quest?
2. The potential of Kung Fu Panda 4's plot structure: $130-177MM
The interweaving of 32 mythological tales can generate a billion unique stories. By using these 32 tales, we can extract the plot structure of any story across various genres. Our study of blockbuster, hit, and flop plot structures led to the discovery of the Mythosis Code, a set of principles for creating compelling stories. The plot structure of a story is analyzed to see how well it adheres to these storytelling principles.
2A. Plot structure evaluation of Kung Fu Panda 4
- All Blockbusters have at least 3 universal quests. The script uses universal quests of Power, Tranquillity & Idealism
- In Blockbusters, each universal quest is mirrored by ONLY ONE character. Po mirrors the universal quest of Tranquillity whereas The Chameleon mirrors the quest of Power. Zhen mirror the quest of Prometheus.
- Every Blockbuster character borrows at least 35% of the universal quest. Po mirrors 24% of the events from Odysseus’ quest. The Chameleon borrows 26% of the events from Circe’s quest. Zhen borrows 19% of the events from Prometheus’ quest.
- Blockbusters have a quest interweaving threshold of 0.5. Interweaving occurs when events of 2 quests occur simultaneously in the story. Kung Fu Panda 4's quest interweaving score of 0.67 is above par.
An example of interweaving the quests of Po & Zhen:
2B. Box office revenue estimation of Kung Fu Panda 4
Kung Fu Panda 4’s innovative plot it suffers from shallow character arcs since the depth of each quest is below the threshold.
The Script Score measures a plot structure’s adherence to the four principles of Mythosis Code. We use the Script Score to estimate a movie’s audience appeal & revenues. Blockbuster plot structures have a score of at least 0.64 and appeal to 20% of the audiences.
Script Score
0.12
Audience appeal
3.41 – 4.73%
I. How is Mythosis Code used to estimate revenues?
II. Aren’t box-office revenues influenced by several factors beyond just the story plot?
3. The ideal plot structure of Kung Fu Panda 4
We have identified 32 mythological tales, the superset of all tales across cultures. The quests of these tales have also recurred over time periods. They represent human behaviours that are deeply embedded in our shared memories. Each tale is the richest expression of the pursuit of a human desire. The tales have a unique pattern of events spread over 5 major arcs.
Mapping a character’s quest to the relevant mythological tale reveals the gaps in their quest, if any. Plugging these gaps with the missing events deepens the character quest. The missing events also provide an opportunity for interweaving the various quests. These events strengthen the story and unlock its hidden potential.
3A.Quest of characters and their mythological counterparts
Quest 1: Po mirrors the universal quest for Tranquillity
Po’s desire for Tranquillity stems from the need to be in secure surroundings. The tale of Odysseus from Greek mythology is the universal quest for Tranquillity.
Quest 2: The Chameleon mirrors the universal quest for Power
The Chameleon’s desire for Power stems from the need to dominate others. The tale of Circe from Greek mythology is the universal quest for Power.
Quest 3: Zhen mirrors the universal quest for Idealism
Zhen’s desire for Idealism stems from the need for fairness & justice. The tale of Prometheus from Greek mythology is the universal quest for Idealism.
3B.Gaps in the current plot structure
All the 3 quests in the plot structure are shallow.
3C.Unlocking the hidden potential
The plot structure of Kung Fu Panda 4 is a sub set of Mythosis Plot Structure # 18,616.
Deepening each quest unlocks the potential of the story.For example the “Hermes ploy”, wherein Hermes forewarns Odysseus and guides him to defeat Circe, rectifies the character arc of Po as well as deepens Zhen’s quest in the 4th arc.
The plot structure has the potential to generate revenues of $325 – 365MM in the domestic market.
Contact us for Mythosis Plot Structure # 18,616
Tags: Odysseus, Tranquillity, Circe, Power, Kans, Preservation, Leander, Romance, 2012, Gary Ross, Billy Ray, Suzanne Collins, Lionsgate