Paddington in Peru has debuted with a strong Rotten Tomatoes rating.
The sequel, which arrives in UK cinemas on November 8, sees Ben Whishaw return as the voice of the beloved bear, who ventures to the jungle with the Browns to reunite with his great Aunt Lucy (The Crown's Imelda Staunton).
Early reviews have seen the movie receive an impressive 92% critics score on review aggregator site Rotten Tomatoes, continuing the franchise's 90%+ rating record.
Related: Paddington and Paddington 2 have been added back onto Netflix
Paddington in Peru sees Downton Abbey's Hugh Bonneville return as Henry Brown, with Emily Mortimer replacing Sally Hawkins as Mary Brown.
Madeleine Harris and Samuel Joslin are also back as Judy and Jonathan, with Julie Walters reprising her role as eccentric housekeeper Mrs Bird.
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The third outing also features new cast additions in the form of Olivia Colman and Antonio Banderas. Colman plays a nun, while Banderas is Hunter Cabot, an explorer scoping out the Amazon rainforest – but which one will prove to be the villain?
Related: Paddington 4 is already in the works for 70th anniversary
Here's a round-up of what reviewers have been saying of Paddington 3 so far:
Digital Spy
"There's a sticky start before the movie finds its paws and delivers everything you want, from inventive, witty visuals and quirky gags to a heartwarming message.
"So, yes, Paddington in Peru isn't on the same level as Paddington 2, but if you dismiss it because of that, then we've got a hard stare for you."
Empire Magazine
"The Paddington series goes 'Raiders of The Lost Bear', swapping Primrose Hill for the savage jungles of Peru. It's a decent threequel, though a little of the enchantment has been lost in transit."
Variety
"Paddington in Peru is, as any Paddington adventure should be, fast and buoyant and disarmingly sunny in a way that viewers who weren’t alive – or at least of cinemagoing age – for the 2017 release of Paddington 2 will lap up.
BBC
"Paddington in Peru offers a fun and lively hour-and-three-quarters in the cinema, and that's not to be sniffed at, but it comes across as the solid third part of an established franchise rather than a stellar pop-cultural phenomenon in its own right."
The Guardian
"This Paddington threequel is a perfectly decent bet for the holidays, and never anything other than entertaining, but the gag density has thinned out and removing Paddington from Blighty... is a slightly shark-jumping move."
The Daily Telegraph
"Let’s be fair: absolutely no one will have a bad time at Paddington in Peru, which is bouncy, unobjectionable and raises plenty of smiles. But most viewers are likely to come out more sated than elated."
Paddington in Peru is released in UK cinemas on November 8 and in US cinemas on January 17, 2025.
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Emily is an experienced freelance entertainment writer and editor, reporting on all things TV, film, soaps and showbiz. An NCTJ-qualified journalist, with a First Class Honours degree in Journalism from the University of Sussex, Emily is a former Deputy News Editor and Evening News Editor at Digital Spy. She has previously worked at Hello magazine, BBC South News and GoodtoKnow.
A small and big-screen obsessive – with subscriptions to every TV and film service under the sun – Emily knows her movie stars from soap stars, and is always clued up on the latest reality show dumping, just-dropped trailer or off-screen spat. She's interviewed a number of celebrities over the years, with highlights including The Masked Singer host Joel Dommett and GMB's Kate Garraway (who "loved" her trousers).
Emily counts Sharon Horgan and Julia Davis as her TV heroes, and is a loyal Wes Anderson fan. LinkedIn
