Eddie Murphy wasn't lying: Shrek 5 is real, and it's even locked in its cast and a release date

No, Eddie Murphy wasn't messing around, Shrek 5 is on the way, and Dreamworks has confirmed just when you'll be able to watch it.

Last month, comedian and actor Eddie Murphy made the claim that the long in-development Shrek 5 was finally happening, and that there's even a Donkey movie on the way. Of course, Murphy could have always just been manifesting his own destiny, but as it turns out he was telling the truth - last night, Dreamworks officially announced that Shrek 5 is in development, and that you can expect to watch it in cinemas July 1, 2026. The announcement trailer was unsurprisingly set to Smash Mouth's All Star, the iconic track that appeared way back in the original 2001 animated film. It also featured the number five made out of Shrek's flesh, which will give me nightmares, so thanks for that, Dreamworks' social media manager.

If you were wondering whether anyone from the original cast outside of Murphy would be returning, there's a pretty simple answer: yes! Shrek himself Mike Myers will be back as the titular character, a rare performance from the actor who hasn't been in all that much since the fourth Shrek film that came out in 2010. Cameron Diaz will also be back as Fiona, potentially even more notable as she had retired from the profession in 2014, though in 2022 she started up again, now set to appear in the comedy spy film Back in Action alongside Jamie Foxx later this year.

Antonio Banderas hasn't been confirmed to be back as Puss in Boots just yet, though that character's 2022 spin-off film The Last Wish did end with him returning to the Kingdom of Far Away, the main setting of the second film in the series. Walt Dohrn, writer and artist on Shrek 2 and Shrek the Third, as well as head of story and voice of Rumpelstiltskin in Shrek Forever After, will be directing this fifth outing.

The official confirmation of Shrek 5 didn't bring any Donkey spinoff news though, so if you're someone that's desperate for that (I'm not sure why you would be), you'll have to wait a while longer to hear more.