“I thought he was a raccoon”: Dustin Hoffman’s Confession about Master Shifu Will Send Kung Fu Panda Fans into Depression
Matthew Sanders
Updated on April 02, 2026
It isn’t every day that you hear that an A-lister does not even know about the details of their popular on-screen character. However, that is exactly what happened with Dustin Hoffman in the Kung Fu Panda movies when he lent his voice to the character of Master Shifu.
Dustin Hoffman thought that Master Shifu was a raccoon
Kung Fu Panda is one of the most popular animated franchises on the planet and it is so for excellent reasons. The series has incredible characters, amazing voice actors, and a completely non-ambiguous plot. In each movie, we saw the character development of Po, aka the Dragon Warrior, to a higher level than he was in the previous movie.
The first Kung Fu Panda movie came out in 2008. With its star-studded lineup of voice actors and light-hearted comedy, the movie became a massive critical and commercial success at the box office and went on to spawn a trilogy of movies that would go on to entertain the masses for years.
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Dustin Hoffman voiced the iconic character of Master Shifu in the franchise. Considering the role and impact of the character in the franchise, it is hard to imagine someone else as the voice of Master Shifu now.
After giving the voice of Master Shifu in 3 movies, one would assume that Dustin Hoffman at least knew what kind of animal the character was in the movies. However, as it was revealed in an interview with TODAY, Hoffman really thought that Master Shifu was a raccoon. He said,
SUGGESTED“I am not even sure what it is, is it a raccoon? [Gets told that Master Shifu is a red panda off-camera.] I am a red panda?… I thought he was a raccoon.”
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The American TV personality, Matt Lauer, who was interviewing Dustin Hoffman was also amused by this interaction. Lauer went on to point out that the Academy Award-winning actor has earned almost $930 million because of this character and still was unsure about the type of animal Master Shifu is.
Cast details and release date of the upcoming Kung Fu Panda 4 movie
After the release of Kung Fu Panda 3, it was assumed by everyone that maybe Dreamworks Animation had probably wrapped up with their beloved franchise. However, after the release of the trailer for Kung Fu Panda 4, fans are worried that the studio is just concerned about making money by reopening a perfectly wrapped-up series.
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Jack Black will be reprising his role as everyone’s beloved character, Po, once again in Kung Fu Panda 4. Dustin Hoffman will be reprising his role as Master Shifu along with James Hong and Bryan Cranston who will be reprising their roles as Mr. Ping and Li Shan respectively. However, there has been no news about the Furious Five characters being a part of the upcoming movie which has disappointed the fans of the franchise a lot.
In addition to the old characters, we will also be seeing the introduction of a criminal fox, Zhen, who becomes an accomplice to Po in Kung Fu Panda 4. The American actress and rapper, Awkwafina will be lending her voice to Zhen.
Kung Fu Panda 4 is all set to be released later this month on March 8, 2024.
