DreamWorks Animation recently announced the release date for the fifth Shrek film on its X (formerly Twitter) page.
A Shrek green number five bounced around in the video set to the tune of Smashmouth’s All Star several times before the date, July 1, 2026, appeared. The caption read, “Not too Far, Far Away… @Shrek 5 is coming to theaters on July 1, 2026 with Mike Myers, Eddie Murphy and Cameron Diaz.”
Shrek and friends will be on their way… soon-ish
Walt Dohrn, who was a writer and artist on 2004’s Shrek 2 and 2007’s Shrek the Third and as Head of Story on 2010’s Shrek Forever After, will helm the fifth installment. The Trolls franchise executive producer Gina Shay is set to produce together with Illumination CEO Chris Meledandri. Minions: The Rise of Gru’s Brad Ableson will co-direct.
Murphy talked about the project last month when he was interviewed by Collider.
“We started doing Shrek four or five months ago,” he told the entertainment website.
“I recorded the first act, and we’ll be doing it this year. We’ll finish it up,” the comedian continued.
He also teased that his iconic character Donkey will have his own solo movie.
Shrek is DreamWorks’ most famous franchise and is loosely based on William Steig’s 1990 picture book. The first film introduced the audience to the sort-of Scottish-sounding ogre Shrek (Myers) on his way to rescue the Princess Fiona (Diaz).
The first Academy Award for Best Animated Feature
Shrek won the inaugural Academy Award for Best Animated Feature in 2022. The original film grossed $488.6 million globally. The sequel where Shrek met Fiona’s parents is still the animation studio’s highest-grossing movie, earning $932.4 million worldwide.
The third film which followed the titular ogre’s quest to look for his replacement as King of Far, Far Away, Fiona’s cousin Arthur “Artie” Pendragon (Justin Timberlake), is DreamWorks’ second-highest-grossing film with $813.4 million in global box office earnings. The fourth film followed Shrek’s struggles with adjusting to his responsibilities as family man as well as growing old. The movie earned a decent $752.6 million globally, the studio’s third highest-grossing film.
The Shrek franchise also includes 2011’s Puss in Boots, the spinoff movie of the Antonio Banderas-voiced swashbuckling feline. The movie also had a sequel released in 2022, which earned $481.7 million worldwide and was nominated for an Oscar for best animated feature film.
The Shrek franchise extends to stage musical adaptation on Broadway, short film and interactive television specials, TV and web series, video games, comics and several themed attractions. The Broadway musical received eight Tony Award nominations, including Best Musical. The franchise is the second highest-grossing animated franchise in history.
And as for Donkey’s upcoming solo movie, it’s about time. Puss in Boots, who only appeared in Shrek 2, compared to Donkey who had been Shrek’s loyal sidekick since the beginning, got his own movie 10 years after the first Shrek film and only a year after the fourth. Donkey, on the other hand, has been waiting for more than a quarter century for his turn. He deserves at least one film of his own before he and Dragon enjoy their retirement.
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