In yet more evidence that lime green is truly having a moment (thanks, Charli), it’s been announced that a new instalment of Shrek is officially in the works.
DreamWorks Animation confirmed that the beloved franchise will add to its SCU (Swamp Cinematic Universe) with a fifth film, which is set for release on July 1, 2026. The animation studio shared a teaser clip featuring the Shrek-synonymous song “All Star” by Smash Mouth, who probably won’t be thrilled about all the reminders of their breakout hit.
Original Shrek star Mike Meyers will return as the titular ogre, with Eddie Murphy and Cameron Diaz also reprising their roles as Donkey and Princess Fiona, respectively. It will mark one of Diaz’s first major roles since retiring from acting in 2018, a return that’s on par with that time KFC brought back its popcorn chicken slab.
It has not yet been revealed whether Antonio Banderas, who voices Puss In Boots, will appear in Shrek 5, but he theoretically has nine lives so we won’t count him out just yet. Walt Dohrn, who served as a writer on Shrek 2, is on board to direct the new instalment.
The announcement comes a few weeks after Murphy let slip that he had already begun voice recording for the film and is also working on a Donkey spinoff (because original movies simply don’t exist anymore).
“We started doing [Shrek 5] months ago,” Murphy told Collider in June. “I recorded the first act, and we’ll be doing it this year, we’ll finish it up.” The actor went on to reveal that the Donkey spinoff will follow Shrek 5, meaning it’ll likely arrive when fans of the original movie are well into their twilight years.
Shrek 5 will be released some 25 years (that’s like, 100 in ogre years) after the first film premiered in 2001. Since then, the franchise has expanded with four additional films, with the most recent instalment, Shrek Forever After, arriving in 2010.
Among other things, Shrek has spawned a Broadway musical, a burlesque show titled Shreklesque (hot), and an Airbnb listing styled in the vein of Shrek’s swamp.
On a personal note, Shrek has also formed part of my sexual nightmares, but that probably won’t be the plot of the fifth instalment.
Image source: DreamWorks Animation
The post Shrek 5 Officially Confirmed For 2026 By DreamWorks & That’ll Do, Donkey, That’ll Do appeared first on PEDESTRIAN.TV .
