It’s been 25 years since the first Shrek movie, but the franchise is still incredibly popular, so much so that Shrek 5 is slated for release next year. The franchise’s continued to success has meant that despite semi-retirement, Cameron Diaz is still recognized as the voice of Princess Fiona from time to time, though it seems that doesn’t always go well.
Diaz, who appears with Keanu Reeves in the new movie Outcome, available with an Apple TV subscription, recently appeared on The Tonight Show Starring Jimmy Fallon, where the topic of the upcoming Shrek sequel came up. The host asked the actress if her voice gets recognized, and she said it’s actually the parents who usually try to tell their kids who she is. Diaz explained…
Parents are the ones that are like ‘Honey, this is Princess Fiona. She does the voice for Princess Fiona.' And one time this little girl, she just looked at me and burst into tears. She just started crying, like bawling her eyes out.
While most people who be thrilled to meet Cameron Diaz, or the voice behind a favorite animated character, a young child meeting Princess Fiona is probably either incredibly overwhelming or utterly confusing. While even young kids certainly understand that animated characters are not “real,” that doesn’t mean they fully grasp the mechanics of the characters, so seeing somebody who looks like Cameron Diaz and being told that she’s Fiona might certainly cause some kids to break down.
From the sound of things, this one story isn’t the only time that this, or something like it, has happened to Cameron Diaz. As a result, she apparently tries to get parents not to say anything in order to prevent any outbursts. She continued…
And her mom’s like ‘I’m so sorry.’ I’m like, 'I really don’t take it personally.’ I would cry if I found out the voice of, [Princess Fiona looked like me] they don’t quite understand. I always tell parents, like, don’t tell them. It’s like Santa Claus.
With Shrek 5 coming out, there will be a lot more people exposed to the voice of Fiona, which may, unfortunately, lead to more emotional breakdowns from small children. Although if kids are having trouble with the idea that Cameron Diaz is Fiona, I can’t imagine how kids react to finding out that the voice of Shrek looks like Mike Myers.
This is probably good information to have for the new members of the Shrek 5 cast. Zendaya will voice the daughter of Shrek and Fiona. Our favorite ogre couple will also have sons, so now there will be a whole family of characters to confuse children when they meet celebrities on the street.
