Dreamworks Pictures is bring back the lovable ogre Shrek in movie theaters with "Shrek 5." "Austin Powers" writer Michael McCullers has been recruited to write the script for the movie, and he recently revealed his plans for the sequel.
Speaking to The Hollywood Reporter, McCullers revealed that "Shrek 5" is in active development and that the Mike Meyer's fifth outing as the titular character may just change the entire animated franchise.
"I finished that script, which I really, really, really love. It's really personal to me. It's got a pretty big reinvention behind it," McCullers said. The said reinvention is primarily due to the fact that Universal has since brought DreamWorks, there's already a change in how the franchise works on the corporate level and also with respect to where the story is going.
"There's been four movies and a lot of material, so the characters are pretty beloved and they're great characters, but you also have to think of a pretty new take at that point."
The "Shrek" movies were a big earner for DreamWorks Pictures at the time they were released. "Shrek Forever After," the fourth movie in the franchise, earned $752 million at the box office when it was released in 2010. Despite that impressive number, it was still considered the lowest-earning installment out of all the "Shrek" movies, Movie Pilot reported.
The "Shrek" franchise put the studio at par with rival Pixar which, at that time, was already dominating the animated movies department.
It has been almost a decade since Shrek and Fiona's love story hit up the big screen. The last time we saw the couple, they were already living their happily ever after and are taking care of their own children. It is expected that by the time the audience sees them again in "Shrek 5," their family has already grown and the film will focus on what lies after happily ever after.
There's still word for now as to which characters will re-appear and which actors and actresses will reprise their roles, but fans are hoping lead stars Meyers and Cameron Diaz will return as the odd ogre couple.