Shrek 5 Will be Released In Theatres on July 2026
Get your waffles ready.
After Eddie Murphy previously spilled the beans that it was in the works, Universal has confirmed that Shrek 5 is on the way, and even gave it a release date today: July 1, 2026.
Not too Far, Far Away… @Shrek 5 is coming to theaters on July 1, 2026 with Mike Myers, Eddie Murphy, and Cameron Diaz. pic.twitter.com/3j6ctXpPGu
— DreamWorks Animation (@Dreamworks) July 9, 2024
The official DreamWorks Animation X/Twitter account posted a teaser trailer with the Shrek 5 logo to accompany the release date. In addition to a release date, Universal also confirmed to Variety that Mike Myers, Eddie Murphy, and Cameron Diaz will all reprise their roles in the upcoming films.
By the time Shrek 5 comes out, it'll have been 15 years since the release of the most recent mainline Shrek movie, Shrek Forever, in 2010. However, DreamWorks has released a couple of Puss in Boots spinoffs in the meantime, including 2022's critical darling The Last Wish.
The existence of Shrek 5 has been teased for some time, although today's release date announcement is our most concrete update on it. Previously, Murphy, who voices Donkey in the series, said in an interview with Collider that it would be released sometime next year, and that a Donkey-focused spinoff would come next.
Before that, Illumination CEO and DreamWorks Animation creative adviser Chris Meledandri told Variety that DreamWorks was working on both of those projects with the goal of bringing back the original cast. More vague rumors of Shrek 5's development date all the way back to 2016.
As Hollywood continues to lean more and more on established IP, it's little surprise Universal and DreamWorks would want to revisit everyone's favorite fairytale ogre. According to a previous press release from Universal, the Shrek franchise is the second-highest-grossing animated franchise of all time. The studio made a bid to capitalize on the nostalgia for it with a Shrek 2 re-release for its 20th anniversary in April.
For more on Shrek, check out our guide on how to watch every movie in the franchise (Puss in Boots spinoffs included) in chronological order.
Taylor is a Reporter at IGN. You can follow her on Twitter @TayNixster.
