Shrek, Fiona and Donkey will all return in Shrek 5The new Shrek movie is still almost two years away, and it’s already at the centre of debate.
On Thursday evening, the first teaser for Shrek 5 was posted online, depicting Shrek, Fiona and Donkey using the Magic Mirror as a kind of medieval TikTok.
But even the news that Zendaya will be joining the cast as Shrek and Fiona’s teenage daughter was overshadowed by the fact that this latest sequel to the animated classic has a new visual art style that not everyone was happy about.
As the 27-second clip began racking up millions of views, the smoother and glossier versions of the classic characters made many fans of the original films uneasy at the idea of what was to come – with some going as far as comparing it to the first design for Sonic The Hedgehog in his first big-screen outing back in 2019…
shrek pioneered ugly photorealistic animation, a style that kinda played into the crudeness as a piece of disney mockery.
— nalbis (@nalbis) February 27, 2025
and now they're just mimicking pixar. https://t.co/prFN37Yymh
I don't know who this man is, but it ain't Shrek. pic.twitter.com/rTkNrsd639
— Ezra Cubero (@EzraCubero) February 27, 2025
that is NOT shrek https://t.co/YQDRu0XP1Upic.twitter.com/HYzugBxCTM
— lilo (@heavenslt) February 27, 2025
Hmm, interesting art style https://t.co/R9neiF0jeqpic.twitter.com/er5S15ZnrO
— SuperSmashBro64 (@SmashBro64) February 27, 2025
Shrek 5 trailer: https://t.co/PE21AKU39bpic.twitter.com/Tbgg4tTkNF
— ????⁶????ﾒ???? ???????????????? (@bxovo_) February 27, 2025
can we bully dreamworks to change the shrek 5 animation like we did to paramount to change sonic’s animation? https://t.co/WkE82Czc8v
— chu (@THEHORRORGOTH) February 27, 2025
this is beyond losing the sauce. this is straight up disrespectful to the original art style ???????????? https://t.co/Ga4OQ2bPtxpic.twitter.com/3gzBIwD3o4
— Frankie Fey ✮ (@frankiefeyy) February 27, 2025
Why does the animation look like an AI interpretation of what Shrek 5 could look like ???? https://t.co/O1DcTCqfMHpic.twitter.com/M16DYYQYKE
— Saammuel (@Saammuel) February 27, 2025
Well with all the talk about Shrek 5's new style and animation choices... I felt like a meme had to be made, so here it is!
— TRAFON(s Backup Account) (@RiseFallNickBck) February 28, 2025
Guess we'll see how things continue to develop... pic.twitter.com/Bl3yWWia50
https://t.co/eTwVnLdegPpic.twitter.com/jLPv8sqTP8
— ed (@erar97) February 27, 2025
The Shrek 5 trailer: pic.twitter.com/2nAAGqZbPP
— Aleks Phoenix (@AleksPhoenix) February 27, 2025
Others were in favour of the changes, urging purists to keep open minds when it comes to the new Shrek film…
Shrek 5 being genuinely expressive isn't surprising, but when you see those comparisons putting nostalgia aside, those older movies look so DATED
— Etch Wilde Enjoyer ???????? (@sketching204) February 27, 2025
the technology to make the animation of those older movies doesn't exist anymore and changes were inevitable making a new entry pic.twitter.com/62nFALAecg
These designs are good and work better for more expressive animation like puss and boots. genuinely don't understand this level of backlash. This is the ideal direction. https://t.co/aZENaqqvyy
— Doobus Goobus (@DoobusGoobus) February 27, 2025
Yall act like the new design is the worse thing ever when they've done it once 3 years ago and yall LIKED IT. #shrek5https://t.co/goJycXah7Kpic.twitter.com/AYHVZhuQ0J
— ✨Soap/Amy✨ (@SoapySoapster) February 27, 2025
I'm going to gently hold everyone by the hand while I say that the original Shrek films, while amazing for their time, kind of look like ass in a modern context and some kind of redesign was going to happen no matter what https://t.co/r1iZ7TIfvF
— charlie g - boxtown ✨(link in bio) (@charliepgavin) February 27, 2025
Shrek 5 comes out in 22 months.. chill.
— kevin m. (@kevkev) February 27, 2025
everyone complaining about the animation on shrek 5 is clearly blinded by nostalgia because from what we can see in the trailer the animation is so good and expressive i love it idc
— miel (@tarteaumiau) February 27, 2025
The animation looked weird at first but I could get used to this style.
— ???????????????? ☕???? (@caito_eee) February 27, 2025
and y'all better not act like Shrek never made pop culture references, a tik tok/influencer variation isn't anything new https://t.co/aG9Rq7DaF7
I can understand not immediately digging the art style change but this is NOT the same as Paramount’s old Sonic movie design lol can we be serious https://t.co/ECVfENdMWp
— Mr. Pasquale (@TheMrPasquale) February 27, 2025
I know Shrek 5 looked a little off-putting but this is CRAAAAZYYYY.... pic.twitter.com/4XNN0dRT6L
— JOLLY J✨ (@DynamoSuperX) February 28, 2025
i think the new Shrek designs look fine pic.twitter.com/eDUdxFTWKa
— take another little reece of my heart now baby ???? (@connolly_reece) February 27, 2025
But hey, at least there’s one thing we can all agree on, right…?
I will enjoy Shrek 5 if she is still hot as fuck and has me questioning things about myself pic.twitter.com/NDQYkhUtpO
— Saltydkdan (@saltydkdan) February 27, 2025
Shrek 5 was first revealed to be in the works back in July 2024, with Mike Myers, Eddie Murphy and Cameron Diaz all confirmed to be returning for the next film in the series.
Originally, it was slated to hit cinemas in the summer of 2026, but this has now been pushed back to December of that year.
The film is the first to be released in cinemas since Shrek Forever After back in 2010, although in that time, there have been several spin-offs – most notably Puss In Boots and its sequel Puss In Boots: The Last Wish, which won a rather surprising amount of acclaim when it debuted in 2022.
Eddie Murphy teased in June 2024 during an interview with Collider that work had already begun on Shrek 5 prior, as well as revealing that his character, Donkey, would be getting his own stand-alone movie, in addition to Shrek 5.
