We Have Hard Stares Prepared for the 'Paddington in Peru' Trailer

Paddington Bear, the star of the best franchise in theaters in the 2010s, is finally back on the big screen after a seven-year absence in the first trailer for Paddington in Peru. It’s a Cinderella story of family films; when BBC Films said they were resurrecting the country’s favorite marmalade-eating stuffed Ursus arctos, there was a lot of doubt about commercialization and such. Instead, the films have been so well received that Paddington 2 was at one point ranked as the best-reviewed movie of all time. 

In the years between films, the animated Paddington has been keeping busy, appearing with the British Royal family, taking tea with the late Queen Elizabeth II, and adding himself to classic films daily. As befitting his cultural landmark status, the trailer was unveiled at a special event in London on Wednesday morning (where marmalade sandwiches were served),

Director Dougal Wilson spoke before the audience at the events. “The first film gave us a bit of information about where Paddington came from and how he found his home in London, and in then the second story, he almost loses that home, but in doing he consolidates his community in London, and we also find out a little bit more about Paddington’s origins and how he was rescued. So there’s a lot of missing information about what happens before that. We thought that for the third film, it would be very appropriate for him to return to Peru, but this time, he should take his London friends and community with him and have an adventure there and, in doing so, fill in some of the missing pieces.”

The logline for the threequel reads:

Paddington returns to Peru to visit his beloved Aunt Lucy, who now resides at the Home for Retired Bears. With the Brown Family in tow, a thrilling adventure ensues when a mystery plunges them into an unexpected journey through the Amazon rainforest and up to the mountain peaks of Peru.

The returning voice cast for Paddington includes Ben Whishaw (This Is Going to Hurt), Hugh Bonneville (Downton Abbey), Julie Walters (Indian Summers), Imelda Staunton (The Crown), Madeleine Harris (The White Queen), and Samuel Joslin, who has made his career as Paddington's BFF Jonathan. New voices will include Emily Mortimer (The New Look), taking over the role of Mra. Brown from Sally Hawkins, Olivia Colman (Empire of Light), Jim Broadbent (My Lady Jane), Amit Shah (Happy Valley), and Antonio Banderas (The Masks of Zorro).

Wilson takes over directing from the Paddington franchise's initial director, Paul King. who wrote and directed the first two films about the beloved bear from the children’s stories by British author Michael Bond. King wrote the story for the third film with his collaborators Simon Farnaby and Mark Burton, with the latter turning it into a screenplay with Jon Foster and James Lamont.

Paddington in Peru arrives in theaters on Friday, November 8, 2024, in the U.K. and in the U.S. on Friday, January 17, 2025.