Is ‘Shrek 5’ on the way? Here’s what is actually happening

In 2001, the first Shrek movie came out and gave audiences a different spin on the kind of stories Disney mined for money over the previous decades. It sparked a wave of sequels of varying quality and now, claims of a Shrek 5 are cropping up. While several see it as inevitable given it is a recognizable thing which has an audience, reality is a little bit more complicated at the moment.

The rumblings about another adventure with Mike Myers’ titular ogre first emerged in a new article published by Variety. In it, Illumination founder and CEO Chris Meledandri discusses the studio’s projects with Universal, and in between mentioning sequels to more recent franchises and some coming original projects, he says another is being talked about which, if it moved forward, might bring back the original cast, though absolutely nothing is officially agreed to as of filing this story.

“Talks are starting now, and every indication that we’ve gotten is there’s tremendous enthusiasm on behalf of the actors.”

Meledandri does have reasons to be bullish on the prospect of the jolly(-ish) green guy coming back for more. Years ago, a script was completed for another film — though, it could end up getting thrown out if a production does start up — and Eddie Murphy has indicated he would return in seconds to play Donkey. He told Variety this in January, and Meledandri is delighted by his love.

“It’s evidence of his strong enthusiasm for a role that he so brilliantly inhabited and really created alongside the artists at DreamWorks. I found that comment to be very exciting.”

For now, those who feel Shrek is love and Shrek is life will just have to be patient and stream the originals on Peacock. Alternatively, you could also find the Shrek burlesque show (yes, this is real), which has previously toured Australia. As well, there is also the Shrek musical, which has previously been available to watch on Netflix, and is available to rent on YouTube right now.