Cameron Diaz will be back on the big screen with Eddie Murphy and Mike Myers for “Shrek 5.”
We’re heading back to the swamp! DreamWorks Animation has announced that “Shrek 5” is in the works, with a release date set for July 1, 2026. Mike Myers, Eddie Murphy, and Cameron Diaz will all return for this new adventure.
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, 2024Advertisement
Fans of the Shrek movies were thrilled by the news. One person said, “The greatest of all time is back!” Another commented, “Shrek is love!”
Antonio Banderas hasn’t confirmed if he will return as Puss in Boots. “Shrek 5” will be directed by Walt Dohrn, who worked on previous Shrek movies and voiced Rumpelstiltskin in “Shrek Forever After.” The film will be produced by Gina Shay and Chris Meledandri, with Brad Ableson as co-director.
Eddie Murphy revealed in June that he had already started recording his lines for the movie and would also do a Donkey spinoff next.
“We started working on ‘Shrek 5’ months ago,” Eddie Murphy told Collider. “I recorded the first part, and we’ll finish it this year. ‘Shrek’ is coming out, and Donkey will have his own movie too. So, we’re making both ‘Shrek’ and Donkey movies.”
The “Shrek” series released four movies between 2001 and 2010. The first “Shrek” made DreamWorks Animation famous, earning $487 million worldwide and winning the first Oscar for Best Animated Feature. “Shrek 2” earned $928 million. Both movies competed at the Cannes Film Festival. “Shrek the Third” and “Shrek Forever After” didn’t get as much praise but still made $813 million and $752 million. The “Puss in Boots” spinoffs also did well, making $555 million and $484 million.
In 2018, Universal Pictures asked Chris Meledandri, the producer behind “Despicable Me” and “The Super Mario Bros. Movie,” to bring back the “Shrek” and “Puss in Boots” series. He wanted to keep the same voice actors because he believed they were key to the movie’s success.
“When you listen to those original voices, they’re amazing,” Meledandri said. “We could remake the characters, but I feel nostalgic and want to keep them the same. Our challenge is making this new movie feel fresh, not just another sequel.”
The “Shrek” series has three more movies: “Shrek 2” (2004), “Shrek the Third” (2007), and “Shrek Forever After” (2010). There are also several TV specials and videos, like “Shrek the Halls” (2007), “Scared Shrekless” (2010), “Shrek’s Yule Log” (2010), and “Shrek’s Thrilling Tales” (2012). “Shrek’s Thrilling Tales” was the last project Cameron Diaz worked on before “Shrek 5.”
Before “Shrek 5” comes out in 2026, Cameron Diaz will return to acting in Netflix’s comedy action film, “Back In Action.” She stars alongside her longtime friend and two-time co-star Jamie Foxx. They previously acted together in “Any Given Sunday” in 1999 and the remake of “Annie” in 2014.
In 2018, Diaz said she was retiring from acting. Her last movie was “Annie,” and she also appeared in “Sex Tape” with Jason Segal and “The Other Woman” with Leslie Mann and Kate Upton that year.
In 2020, Cameron Diaz talked about why she decided to stop acting while chatting with Gwyneth Paltrow on the “In Goop Health: The Sessions” video series.
“I found peace in myself because I started taking care of myself. I feel grounded and light,” she told Paltrow, explaining that “working at that level, being in the spotlight, and being so public is really intense.”
Diaz, who married Benji Madden from Good Charlotte in 2015, explained that she wanted more control over her life outside of showbiz after realizing she wasn’t happy. (Diaz and Madden, 45, have a daughter named Raddix, who is 4 years old, and a son named Cardinal, who is 4 months old.)
“I looked at my life and saw that during movie-making, I was totally absorbed — it’s like they owned me,” she said. “I realized I had given away parts of my life to others. They took it. So I had to reclaim it and take charge of my life.”
In 2022, a source told Us Weekly that Cameron Diaz had said no to “many offers” since she took a break from acting.
“Cameron was busy for so many years, and it’s true that acting took up a lot of her life, which she felt wasn’t good for her,” the insider said. “She loved being an actor and is thankful for those opportunities.”
Source: Variety