Back in May, I interviewed Jennifer Yuh Nelson – the director of “Kung Fu Panda 2”. She wasn’t the first female director for a DreamWorks animated movie (Vicky Jensen co-directed “Shrek” and helmed “Shark Tale”), but she’s now in a class by herself.
“KFP2” has become the top grossing film of all-time directed by a woman, with $637.6 million worldwide. According to EW.com, the film has passed “Mamma Mia!” (the movie based on the musical directed by Phyllida Lloyd and starring Meryl Streep), which made $609.8 million in 2008.
“Kung Fu Panda 2” has not done as well as the original in the U.S. ($164.3M to $215.4M), but has done much better overseas, especially in China where “2” has already made $91.5M compared to the original’s $26M total in China three years ago.
Domestically, the top grossing film directed by a woman is 2009’s “Alvin and the Chipmunks: The Squeakquel” (Betty Thomas), which made $219M in the U.S. However a worldwide total of $443M wasn’t enough to be #1. Her previous films include “Doctor Dolittle” and “The Brady Bunch Movie”.
I congratulate Jennifer on this accomplishment. Maybe she’ll get to direct “KFP3”.