“Shrek 5” has set its release date for summer 2026, DreamWorks announced Tuesday.
The animated sequel will premiere timed to the original film’s 25th anniversary and star franchise regulars Mike Myers, Cameron Diaz and Eddie Murphy.
“Shrek 5” will be directed by Walt Dohrn, who last directed “Trolls Band Together” for DreamWorks Animation. He has a long history with the franchise, having worked on the second and third “Shrek” films as a writer and artist and serving as head of story on the fourth “Shrek” film (it’s also worth noting that Dohrn voiced the character of Rumpelstiltskin in “Shrek Forever After”).
The movie will be produced by Gina Shay, who worked closely with Dohrn on “Trolls” and who produced “Shrek Forever After.” Illumination CEO Chris Meledandri, who is behind the “Despicable Me” franchise and “The Super Mario Bros. Movie,” will also produce. The movie will be co-directed by Brad Ableson, who co-directed 2022’s “Minions: The Rise of Gru” for Meledandri and Illumination.
“Shrek” was released back in 2001, based on the 1990 children’s book written and illustrated by William Steig. At the time, it was only the second computer-animated feature released by DreamWorks Animation after 1998’s “Antz,” with the animation being handled by Pacific Data Images, then known for their creation of the Jim Henson character Waldo and a CGI segment for “The Simpsons’” “Treehouse of Horror.” It also had a somewhat tortured production history, first worked on by a group known as the Propellerheads (that included a young J.J. Abrams) and initially being voiced by Chris Farley.
When Farley died, Myers took over. After voicing much of the movie in his usual North American accent (Myers grew up in Toronto), he decided that the character should be Scottish. His recording sessions were scrapped and new animation had to be completed for this version, now directed by Andrew Adamson and Vicky Jenson.
All that heartache seemed like an afterthought after the film was released and proved to be a huge success and in many ways established DreamWorks Animation going forward, with its bright animation, irreverent sense of humor and offbeat characters. “Shrek” would win the inaugural Best Animated Feature Oscar, beating out Pete Docter’s “Monsters Inc.” and “Jimmy Neutron: Boy Genius.”
There would be three more sequels that followed – “Shrek 2” in 2004, “Shrek the Third” in 2007 and “Shrek Forever After” in 2010. It would also inspire two spinoff films: “Puss in Boots” in 2011 and the Oscar-nominated “Puss in Boots: The Last Wish” in 2022.
In addition to the features, there have also been 3-D theme park attractions (“Shrek 4-D”), short films, holiday specials (“Shrek the Halls” and “Scared Shrekless”), plus an animated “Puss in Boots” television series and countless pieces of merchandise, that are still sold today.
According to the official press release, the characters “have grown into an indelible part of pop culture, reminding audiences around the globe that beauty is in the eye of the beholder.”
“Shrek 5” premieres July 1, 2026.
