Jul 9, 2024

- “Minions” studio chief Chris Meledandri to produce “Shrek 5.

Universal has set a release date for DreamWorks Animation's highly anticipated “Shrek 5”: July 1, 2026. If this date comes to fruition, it will be just 12 days after Disney's planned release of Pixar's “Toy Story 5.”

In an announcement today, DreamWorks revealed that original Shrek voice actors Mike Myers, Eddie Murphy, and Cameron Diaz will all return to the project.

The new film will be directed by Walt Dohrn, who directed Trolls World Tour and Trolls Band Together. A veteran of DreamWorks, Dohrn has a long connection to the “Shrek” franchise, having served as story artist and writer on “Shrek 2” and “Shrek 3” and story head on “Shrek Forever After”. He is also the voice of Rumpelstiltskin in the franchise. Brad Abelson, co-director of Minions: The Rise of Gru, will co-direct the film.

Gina Shay and Chris Meledandri are the film's producers. Shay is a DreamWorks veteran who produced “Shrek Forever After,” while Meledandri is the founder of Illumination, which produced “Despicable Me,” “The Secret Life of Pets” and “The Super Mario Brothers Movie.”

Meledandri's involvement in the “Shrek” franchise has been known for six years; with Comcast-NBCUniversal's acquisition of Dreamworks Animation in 2016, making Dreamworks and Illumination sibling companies enabled his entry into the franchise.

A proven hit maker, Meledandri has previously spoken about the huge task of rebooting the Academy Award-winning “Shrek” franchise, which had four films produced between 2001 and 2010 but had not released a new film in the past 14 years. “There's tremendous fun in that world, but it's a high hurdle to find a story that really is (that world),” he said back in 2018. I'm trying to find something in the story that really feels like a departure.”

Production on Shrek has been quiet for a while, but the spin-off Puss in Boots franchise spawned two films, including the Oscar-nominated Puss in Boots: 2022, which was nominated for an Academy Award.