"We saw the potential of this being the archetypal hero's journey that has been done millions of times, but we could actually do the most extreme hero's journey," Osborne said. "Take the most unlikely guy and bring him all the way to being a hero."
As cartoon heroes go, Katzenberg thinks Po can go toe-to-toe with the animation world's box-office heavyweight, the irritable ogre Shrek.
"I do think that Po the panda is going to give Shrek a run for his money, because I think that Po in a very different way is without question the most lovable character we've ever created," Katzenberg said. "Shrek's an anti-hero hero. Po is an unlikely hero. He is more in tune with what we are ourselves. He actually has to find the hero within, and I think we all have a hero within us.
"So it's just very relatable to find this kind of average guy who's working in his dad's noodle restaurant suddenly have an ambitious fantasy to be something great, only to learn that being the best version of yourself is greatness."
"Kung Fu Panda" debuts in U.S. theaters June 6.
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