That’s right, Shrek fans, the fifth film in the series has officially been confirmed and has a release date, and the new movie will be a sequel to the hugely popular spin-off film, Puss in Boots.
The original voice cast is set to return, with DreamWorks Animation creative partner Chris Meledandri previously telling Variety , “This isn’t that different from the process we went through with Mario, which was looking at what the core elements that the audience loved and doing the best we can to honour those core elements.”
“And we’re working hard to build out story elements and new characters that will take us to entirely new places, and the original cast is a big part of that.”
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He added: “We are hopeful the cast will return. Discussions are starting now and all the indications we’re getting are that the actors are very keen to return.”
Here’s everything you need to know about Shrek the Five’s troubled production and when we’ll see the green ogre on our screens again.
Shrek the 5 release date
After literally years of waiting and months of rumors, Shrek 5 has been officially confirmed and has a release date.
The film is set to be released on July 1, 2026, so we still have two years to wait, but at least we now have a solid release date in sight.
After the fourth film was released in 2010 (which feels so old now), Dreamworks had hinted at the possibility of making one more film, despite it being billed as the final one in the series. Development on Shrek 5 began in 2016, with Austin Powers screenwriter Michael McCullers attached to write the script.
Shrek the Fifth was targeted for a 2019 release, but then everything went quiet, even though the voice cast confirmed that a script had been written. Eddie Murphy then told CinemaBlend that a 2020 release was likely, but that was just an estimate and that year had come and gone.
The previous films were released in 2001, 2004, 2007 and 2010, meaning that they were released every three years.
Shrek 5 cast: Which characters will star?
Shrek, Donkey and Puss in Boots. DreamWorks
Along with the release date, it was also announced that Mike Myers, Eddie Murphy and Cameron Diaz will be returning as Shrek, Donkey and Fiona, with other cast members, including returning stars, expected to be announced soon.
One person who has yet to be confirmed is Antonio Banderas, who voices the famous Puss in Boots. Considering that at the end of Puss in Boots the cat returns to visit an “old friend” in a land far, far away, it seems like it’s only a matter of time before we see Banderas’ return.
Shrek the 5th synopsis: What happens?
Shortly after the release of Shrek the Second in 2004, producer Jeffrey Katzenberg told IGN that Shrek was originally planned as a five-part film, and that in Shrek the Fifth, “when we meet Shrek in the first movie, we find out why he ended up in the swamp.”
Originally, Shrek the Five was supposed to be a prequel released in 2013, but during the production of Shrek Forever After, it was decided that a fourth film would be the perfect way to end the journey of the beloved green ogre.
Rumors of a fifth film continued after the hiatus, but production on Shrek the Five began in earnest after NBCUniversal parent company Comcast acquired DreamWorks Animation for $3.8 billion in 2016. NBCUniversal CEO Steve Burke spoke about plans to revive the series and other DreamWorks films at the time, and later that year it was reported that the film was scheduled for a 2019 release.
So far so good: Eddie Murphy has confirmed that Austin Powers screenwriter Michael McCullers is already writing the script, and McCullers told The Hollywood Reporter in March 2017 that his story is a “pretty big reinvention” of the franchise, sparking speculation that Shrek 5 might actually be a reboot.
Shrek 2. Dreamworks/Universal
Then in 2018, Variety reported that both Shrek 5 and Puss in Boots 2 would be reboots (but with the same voice actors), with Despicable Me mastermind Chris Meledandri attached to produce the revivals.
“The challenge for us was to find something that felt more than just another movie in a sequel series,” he said.
However, despite a successful pre-production, nothing has been heard since, and it’s clear Shrek the Fifth didn’t make it to its 2019 release date.
Rumors then began to heat up again following the success of Puss in Boots in 2022, and in 2023 Meledandri revealed that production on Shrek 5 had begun.
In June 2024, Eddie Murphy also confirmed plans for the film and a Donkey spinoff, saying, “We [Shrek 5] I did this a few months ago, recorded the first part and will finish it by the end of the year.
“Shrek is coming out, Donkey is getting his own movie, we’re doing Donkey, we’re doing a Shrek and Donkey movie,” he said. [movie]I think it will be released in 2025.”
The film now has an official release date of July 2024, and it has been announced that it will be directed by Walt Dohrn, with Meledandri and Brad Abelson co-directing.
How to watch past Shrek movies
There are four movies in the Shrek series, and you can get all four movies in a box set here, including the following movies:
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Shrek the Fifth is scheduled for release on July 1, 2026.
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