A lot of people are talking about a fifth (and final, perhaps) Shrek movie online right now — and while the reason for the current conversation might be a little less than reliable, the fact remains: the people know what they want, and what they want is Mike Myers and Eddie Murphy to come back together for the first time in more than a decade.

Let’s get the immediate update out of the way first; social media has been excited over the past day because of a rumor that DreamWorks Animation is looking at a 2025 release for the (very) long-awaited Shrek 5 — but the source of that rumor is a since-deleted LinkedIn post from an intern who works for NBC Universal, which feels like the very definition of “unconfirmed,” if we’re being honest.

That doesn’t mean that DreamWorks isn’t working on a fifth installment in the series, however; in fact, they’ve been talking about such a thing for a long time, with Illumination founder Chris Meledandri telling Variety earlier this year, “We anticipate the cast coming back. Talks are starting now, and every indication that we’ve gotten is there’s tremendous enthusiasm on behalf of the actors to return.” (Meledandri is a creative advisor for DreamWorks on the Shrek franchise.)

Despite the last Shrek movie — Shrek Forever After — coming out back in 2010, the franchise has remained active via Puss in Boots feature spin-offs in 2011 and 2022, as well as shorts and television projects featuring the character; a fifth Shrek movie has been discussed publicly since way back in 2004, with then-DreamWorks Animation CEO Jeffrey Katzenberg saying that the final movie would reveal how the character ended up in the swamp audiences met him in for the first time; by 2009, plans had changed and Shrek Forever After was officially described by DreamWorks as the final movie in the story — only for Katzenberg to tease that wasn’t the case five years later.

Development of the fifth movie was teased again in 2016 when NBC Universal bought DreamWorks Animation, with the movie being described as a reboot for the series in 2018… despite featuring the original voice cast.

So where is the movie right now? That’s a great question, and one that NBC Universal could answer anytime it’s ready. After all, as the furore that’s followed the 2025 “leak” has confirmed, the fanbase is ready, eager, and hungry.

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