‘Shrek 5’ Release Date Officially Scrapped as ‘Minions’ Take Over

Shrek 5‘s original release date has been canceled.

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Universal Pictures has pushed back the release of Shrek 5 to December 23, 2026. The highly anticipated film was originally scheduled to hit theaters on July 1, 2026, a date that has now been taken by Universal’s upcoming Minions sequel.

Universal’s Despicable Me and Minions films have historically come during Independence Day, with last year’s Despicable Me 4 cleaning up nicely at the box office with nearly $1 billion. Shrek 5 will now target the 2026 holiday period, another promising time of year when it comes to big-budget releases.

Initially confirmed in 2024 following years of rumors, controversy, and fan theories, Shrek 5 will be the first mainline Shrek title to hit theaters in 16 years. It is a direct continuation of the events of Shrek Forever After, which was released in 2010.

Originally announced back in 2016, Shrek 5 encountered many issues regarding its conception and development. News on the film went quiet until 2023, when Illumination CEO Chris Meledandri shared an update on the project.

In addition to Shrek 5 news, Meledandri also discussed a spin-off centered around Donkey, Shrek’s loyal animal companion. Eddie Murphy eventually confirmed both Shrek 5 and the Donkey spin-off, saying, “I did this, I recorded the first act, and we’ll be doing it this year. We’ll finish it up. Shrek is coming out, and Donkey’s gonna have his own movie. We’re gonna do Donkey as well.”

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The Shrek franchise is renowned for its cheeky humor, stunning animation, and iconic cast of characters. Multiple world-famous celebrities have played a part or two over the years, with Cameron Diaz and Eddie Murphy portraying the lead characters of Fiona and Donkey, respectively.

At the center of it all is Mike Myers, who is renowned for his character and voice work, with Shrek arguably being the actor’s most famous role. Prior to the news of an official Shrek sequel, Myers had gone on record saying how “thrilled” he would be to continue starring as the loveable green ogre.

In a 2022 interview with GQ, Myers stated that there had never been a better time to bring Shrek back into the forefront, given the rise in popularity of reboots and sequels.

Myers also discussed what drew him to the character in the first place, “The Euro-centric form that is the fairytale is really about classicism. “When I was approached to do ‘Shrek’ I originally did it as a Canadian and then I re-recorded it as Scottish because that seemed to be the most working class [accent].”

The original Shrek was a huge slam-dunk for DreamWorks and the animation industry as a whole. It grossed $487 million worldwide and became the first Oscar winner in the animated feature category.

Are you excited about Shrek 5? Are you disappointed the film has been delayed?