New "Shrek 5" trailer features Zendaya

Yes, a fifth "Shrek" movie is on its way. It's been a minute since we've seen the ogre gang (and Donkey), given that "Shrek Forever After" came out in 2010. However, Eddie Murphy has had a live-action comeback, Cameron Diaz has un-retired from acting, and Mike Myers still exists. Thus, "Shrek 5."

The original "Shrek" was an unexpected phenomenon and is legitimately pretty good. The sequels are less enjoyable, but they printed cash for Dreamworks. What's happened since, though, is that "Shrek" has been memed to death. It's become maybe the most-mined piece of intellectual property from a meme front, especially for "totally random" meme-ery. 

See, if you don't have any creative ideas of your own, you can just post somebody else's "Shrek" meme or just reference "Shrek," and it's almost like you have a personality!

This teaser for "Shrek 5" directly references the memes, right down to "All Star" by Smashmouth. The real takeaway, though, is that Zendaya is joining the voice cast as Felicia. If they make a "Bye, Felicia" reference, please ask for a refund from the theater. She has a real "moody teen" vibe, but also is an ogre. The meta trailer announcer even says "damn" when referencing Zendaya being in the cast. Well, the audience for "Shrek 5" is fully young Millennials and maybe some older Zoomers (they have not earned "Gen Z" as a designation, a generic bit of nomenclature that should be reserved for Gen X only) so why not?

"Shrek 5" is being released December 23, 2026.