‘Shrek 5’ Will Finally Arrive in July 2026 (for Real This Time)

After 26 long years, Shrek and Co. will finally return to the big screen. DreamWorks animation announced Tuesday, July 9, that the fifth installment of the storied, memed-to-death franchise will hit theaters July 1, 2026, with Mike Myers, Eddie Murphy, and Cameron Diaz all returning.

The announcement was accompanied by a short teaser clip set (of course) to Smash Mouth’s indelible hit “All Star,” which famously played during the opening credits of the first Shrek movie. “The All-Star Returns” reads the tagline for the film, after a big, green five — sprouting round Shrek ears — finishes bouncing around the screen. 

The first Shrek movie— based on William Steig’s picture book of the same name — arrived in May 2001, with Myers playing the titular ogre, Murphy his trusty friend Donkey, and Diaz as Princess Fiona. The film was wildly successful and influential (for good and bad), and even became the first winner of the Academy Award for Best Animated Feature (which was introduced at the 74th Oscars in 2002). 

Three sequels followed: Shrek 2 in 2004, Shrek the Third in 2007, and Shrek Forever After in 2010. There were also various video games, a Broadway musical, and two spinoff movies centered around Antonio Banderas’ character Puss in Boots (plus a Puss in Boots TV show, though Banderas was not involved in that.) 

As for a fifth movie, there’s been plenty of speculation for years, and even rumors in the late 2010s that a film might arrive in 2019 (that obviously didn’t happen). Then last April, news emerged that talks were ongoing with the core cast to return for Shrek 5. And just last month Murphy let slip that they’d already begun recording dialog for the film (and that he was getting his own Donkey movie). 

From Rolling Stone US.