'Paddington 3' confirmed to begin filming in mid-2022

Paddington 3 has been confirmed to begin filming in mid-2022.

Studiocanal, the distributor behind the beloved revival of the kids' franchise, announced the news at Cannes Film Festival on Tuesday.

The threequel will have a story by Paddington 1 & 2 collaborators Paul King, Simon Farnaby and Mark Burton and a screenplay by Burton, Jon Foster and James Lamont.

A third season of TV show The Adventures of Paddington is also in the works.

Starring Hugh Bonneville and Sally Hawkins, Paddington follows the tale of a kind-hearted Peruvian bear, whose love for marmalade sandwiches and habit of finding trouble sends him off on adventures.

The bear is voiced by Ben Whishaw, who is expected to return for the upcoming flick.

Read more: Paddington bear author Michael Bond dies aged 91

However, details of what’s to come for the lovable mac-wearing character are being kept heavily under wraps, including who will play the villain.

Over the past two movies, the team has recruited an A-list star in order to play the antagonist to the cuddly bear’s story.

In 2014’s original film, Nicole Kidman starred as a woman desperate to get her hands on him in order to stuff him and put him on display in the Natural History Museum.

Hugh Grant became the villain of choice in the second instalment, released in 2017, playing pompous down-on-his-luck actor, Phoenix Buchanan.

Making an enemy out of Paddington, he framed the adorable bear for stealing a valuable picture book.

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Paddington 2 was so well-received, that in April 2021 it was declared the best movie of all time by Rotten Tomatoes, knocking long-standing war movie Citizen Kane from its top spot.

The 1941 movie has long been considered one of the greatest movies of all time, but a negative review allowed Paddington 2 to temporarily overtake it.

A release date for Paddington 3 is not yet known.

Watch: Hugh Grant jokes about co-starring with ex Elizabeth Hurley in 'Paddington 3'