DreamWorks Animation is starting a new chapter for one of its box-office behemoths, with a fifth Shrek movie slated for a July 1, 2026 release.

Gina Shay (Shrek Forever After) and Chris Meledandri (Despicable Me) are attached to produce the pic, and director Walt Dohrn (Trolls)—who worked on previous Shrek films as a writer, artist and story head—will co-direct with Brad Ableson (Minions: The Rise of Gru).

The sequel has been teased in recent years, but DreamWorks finally delivered an official confirmation that it’s in the works yesterday. The pic’s summer 2026 release date, which coincides with the 25th anniversary of the original Shrek (2001) movie, also follows closely behind another big kids & family premiere—Pixar’s Toy Story 5 is already locked in for June 19, 2026. 

It will arrive 16 years since the fourth film (Shrek Forever After) debuted, but the franchise has continued to expand during this long gap with spinoff content including theatrical releases Puss in Boots (2011) and Puss in Boots: The Last Wish (2022) and a handful of TV one-offs and series such as Netflix’s The Adventures of Puss in Boots (2015).

With built-up demand for a follow-up pic and more studios betting on toon sequels these days, Shrek 5 is primed for a strong box-office performance, especially given the IP’s own track record. The first four Shrek movies and two Puss in Boots films have collectively racked up around US$4 billion in ticket sales, making it the second highest-grossing animated film franchise of all time (behind only Illumination’s Despicable Me, which happens to be enjoying a strong run in theaters of its own at the moment).

There are no plot details available for Shrek 5 yet, but mainstay voice actors Mike Myers (Shrek), Eddie Murphy (Donkey) and Cameron Diaz (Fiona) are all set to return. And in an interview last month, Murphy also revealed that plans are underway for a Donkey-focused standalone movie.