One of Gary Oldman's most notable villainous roles has recently become a streaming hit. The English actor played Lord Shen in the Oscar-nominated film, Kung Fu Panda 2. Lord Shen was an evil peacock who wanted to rule over China by destroying kung fu for good. But blocking his path is a "warrior of black and white" - Po, the Dragon Warrior.
On August 14, 2025, Kung Fu Panda 2 currently sits at #8 on HBO's Top 10 Movies in the United States, sandwiched between Marc Maron: Panicked and Couples Retreat. This martial arts animated film features a star-studded cast, including the talents of Jack Black, Angelina Jolie, Michelle Yeoh, Seth Rogen, Lucy Liu, and Jackie Chan. Since its release in 2011, Kung Fu Panda 2 has been the highest-grossing feature in the franchise and has received high praise from fans and critics alike. It generated over $665 million at the global box office and received a certified fresh critics' score of 82% and an average audience score of 74% on Rotten Tomatoes.
Kung Fu Panda 2 continued where the 2008 hit film left off, introducing a new villain that Po (Black) and the Furious Five have to face, as well as revealing bits of the Dragon Warrior's backstory and how he became the adopted son of the noodle chef goose, Mr. Ping (James Hong). The film was nominated for Best Animated Feature at the Academy Awards. At the same time, Oldman's role as Lord Shen received a nomination at the Annie Awards for Voice Acting in a Feature Production.
Gary Oldman No Longer Wants To Play Villain Roles Close
Oldman has played numerous roles in his career, but some of his most notable are when he plays villains. Aside from Lord Shen, Oldman played Ivan Korshunov in Air Force One, Count Dracula in 1992's Bram Stoker's Dracula, Zorg in The Fifth Element, and Dr. Smith in Lost in Space. However, the award-winning actor revealed that he started to see himself as Hollywood's "rent-a-villain" and was tired of being typecast for those roles.
Fortunately, Oldman was able to leave that acting archetype and play non-villainous characters like Sirius Black in Harry Potter and the Prisoner of Azkaban, Commissioner Gordon in The Dark Knight, Harry Truman in Oppenheimer, and Winston Churchill in Darkest Hour, just to name a few. And just like his bad guy roles, Oldman also received recognition for his non-villainous work, like winning Best Actor at the Academy Award for Darkest Hour and being nominated for an Emmy Award for his guest role in Friends.
Kung Fu Panda 2 is available to stream on HBO Max.
Your Rating close 10 stars 9 stars 8 stars 7 stars 6 stars 5 stars 4 stars 3 stars 2 stars 1 star Rate Now 0/10 Like Kung Fu Panda 2 PG Animation Family Comedy Release Date May 26, 2011 Runtime 91 minutes Director Jennifer Yuh Nelson Cast See All Jack Black Po (voice) Angelina Jolie Tigress (voice) Dustin Hoffman Shifu (voice) Gary Oldman Lord Shen (voice) Where to watch Close WHERE TO WATCH Streaming RENT BUY
Writers Jonathan Aibel, Glenn Berger Producers Melissa Cobb Prequel(s) Kung Fu Panda Sequel(s) Kung Fu Panda 3, Kung Fu Panda 4 Franchise(s) Kung Fu Panda Powered by Expand Collapse