'Shrek 5' is coming in July 2026, and the big stars are onboard

'Shrek 5' is coming in July 2026, and the big stars are onboard. (Moviestore/Shutterstock/Shutterstock/Moviestore/Shutterstock via CNN Newsource)

Grab your torch and pitchforks! Everyone's favourite ogre is heading back to town, with the the latest movie in the "Shrek" franchise set for release in mid-2026.

Movie studio Dreamworks Animation confirmed in a post on X that "Shrek 5" will hit the big screen on July 1, 2026 – 16 years after the previous episode was released.

The big stars have already signed up again, according to the post – Mike Myers will voice the eponymous ogre, Cameron Diaz will return as Princess Fiona and Eddie Murphy will reprise his role as the irrepressible Donkey.

The movie will be directed by Walt Dohrn ("Trolls") and Brad Ableson ("Minions: The Rise of Gru"), and written by Michael McCullers and Christopher Meledandri.

The first "Shrek" movie was a smash hit when it was released in 2001, spawning sequels "Shrek 2" in 2004, "Shrek the Third" in 2007 and "Shrek Forever After" in 2010.

There was also a spinoff "Puss in Boots" movie featuring the outlaw cat voiced by Antonio Banderas, released in 2011, with a sequel – "Puss in Boots: The Last Wish" – released in 2022.

It has not yet been confirmed whether Banderas will be involved in "Shrek 5."

Murphy leaked the news of his own involvement in an interview with industry publication Collider in June, and also said that Donkey will get his own spinoff movie.

The franchise has become a cultural phenomenon, to the extent that shoe brand Crocs released a Shrek Croc in 2023 and a recreation of Shrek's swamp home was listed for rent on Airbnb last September.