Recently, DreamWorks Animation has announced that Shrek 5 is planned for a theatrical release for July 1st, 2026. This is an installment that has been rumored to be in the making for years now, with most believing that the sequel was in active development after Puss in Boots: The Last Wish came out, which had an ending where Puss and company arrived at the kingdom of Far, Far Away. There was then a report last year that confirmed that a Shrek 5 and even a planned Donkey movie was in the works, with Eddie Murphy supporting those claims a few weeks ago during the press tour for his latest film, Beverly Hills Cop: Axel F. And now we have a confirmed planned release of Summer 2026, which will see Shrek getting his fifth installment along with Buzz, Woody, and the gang getting their fifth installment a few weeks earlier with Toy Story 5, which leads me to the other upcoming animated film I’ll be discussing.
Despite believing that Toy Story 4 would be the definite end of the series, Disney announced last year that a Toy Story 5 is in the works, with the return of Tom Hanks as Woody and Tim Allen as Buzz Lightyear, which is also set for a summer release for June 19th, 2026, about two weeks before Shrek 5 will release. Although never 100% confirmed by Hollywood Reporter themselves, it was announced by Pixar CEO Pete Docter during a Q&A that the film would be directed by Andrew Stanton, who previously directed Finding Nemo, Wall-E and Finding Dory for Pixar along with co-writing the first four Toy Story films.
With Shrek 5 and Toy Story 5 acting as more entries in two long-running beloved animated franchises, you would think they would have the exact same reaction of hype and/or concern among fans of the franchise. However, that has not been the case whatsoever based on the reactions that I have seen.
Whenever you ask someone if they are excited for Shrek 5, they usually respond with…..
And whenever you ask someone if they are excited for Toy Story 5, they usually respond with…
In a way, this is basically like the exact OPPOSITE reactions regarding the last time that Pixar and DreamWorks squared off in the same summer with their most popular animated franchises with Shrek Forever After and Toy Story 3. Last time out, it was the Toy Story sequel that got hype and praise while the Shrek sequel got concern and hate. Talk about the shoe being on the other foot now!
While everyone is entitled to their own opinions and I more than understand concerns for Toy Story 5, I’m quite baffled how lopsided the reactions to the development of Shrek 5 and Toy Story 5 are overall. Both of these are fifth installments to beloved animated franchises, both of these are some of the most popular brand for both Disney and DreamWorks, both are likely going to be massive box office hits at the time it comes out and both are series that once had definite stopping points but continued on strictly due to their financial success and popularity. Which yet again begs the question as to why one movie is receiving more hype and anticipation than another. I’m gonna break down the main reasons as to what I’ve seen online why Shrek 5 is getting hyped and Toy Story 5 is not.
“There are still more stories to be told with Shrek and not for Toy Story!”
Is there though? For what I recall, most of the criticism surrounding the last two Shrek films with Shrek The Third and Shrek Forever After was how the series was starting to run out of ideas and stories of it’s own to tell. Shrek the Third got ripped apart for elements such as having Arthur being helmed as the one to run the throne of Far Far Away, not knowing what to do with Puss and Boots, and having Prince Charming being the lead villain when he already was a villain in the last movie. Shrek Forever After also took flack by stealing the premise of It’s A Wonderful Life and having all the characters go back to square one but in a different timeline. Does that sounds like a franchise that has plenty of room and growth for more stories?
Say what you will about the Toy Story sequels but at least each installment felt like it was taking the characters to the next step in their development and the whole franchise is constantly moving forward instead of backwards. Each entry of Toy Story basically took the themes and messages of it’s previous movie and expanded upon it in the next one. Toy Story 2 had Buzz and Woody switching roles with Woody this time around questioning his own morality, by coming to the realization that one day Andy will grow up and won’t need him anymore. Toy Story 3 expanded upon that and have it build to a climax which saw Woody and the toys learning to move on. Toy Story 4 expanded upon that by having Woody finding a happy ending of it’s own after letting Andy and his fellow toys have there’s. You can save what you want about the execution of those ideas or whether or not they justified their own existence enough but at least the series always feels like it has it’s head set straight forward instead of constantly looking back. That is something that I can NOT say about the previous two Shrek films.
Perhaps Shrek 5 will find an engaging story of it’s own whereas the previous two installments fell flat. Until then, I have yet to think of a big reason for there being more stories to tell with Shrek than there is with Toy Story.
“There’s a larger year gap between the last installment with Shrek than Toy Story!”
This is one reason that I actually agree with. There will in fact be a larger yearly gap between Shrek Forever After to Shrek 5 then there will be for Toy Story 4 and Toy Story 5. Shrek Forever After came out in 2010 and Shrek 5 is due to come out in 2026, that’s 16 (!) years in between those two installments. Whereas Toy Story 4 came out in 2019 and Toy Story 5 is due to come out in 2026, making it just 7 years in between those two installments.
Sure, if you dig deeper and count spin-offs such as Lightyear and Puss in Boots: The Last Wish, that would just be a four year gap for both. However, when it comes to the main entries of both respected series, it’s a fact that Shrek 5 will benefit or not due to it being a larger year gap than Toy Story 5. In an age where it feels like time has gone faster than you can say to infinity and beyond (2019 was literally FIVE YEARS AGO!), there is a strong point to be made that the anticipation for Shrek 5 does in fact have to do with it being so long since the last main Shrek film came out.
“DreamWorks is better at making sequels than Disney!”
When looking at it in the long term, you might have a point here. DreamWorks tend to always bring their A-game when it comes to their sequels, especially with their Part Twos. Shrek 2, Kung Fu Panda 2, How To Train Your Dragon 2, and Puss in Boots: The Last Wish rank up there as DreamWorks Animation absolute best work. And even the likes of Kung Fu Panda 3, How To Train Your Dragon 3, and the Madagascar sequels didn’t turn out so bad either. However, outside of The Last Wish, has DreamWorks really been that great with their sequels in recent memory? Or at least since the 2020s rolled around?
Megamind 2 was a cinematic abomination that was able to united every single human being on the planet with it’s terribleness, Kung Fu Panda 4 was considered the weakest and least necessary of the four Kung Fu Panda movies, and is there anyone outside of young kids and the cartoon community that thought that highly of Trolls World Tour and Trolls Band Together? And did you know that The Croods and The Boss Baby got sequels in the 2020s because I keep forgetting that they exist?
And if we are talking about the Shrek series alone, there are plenty of people that would agree that the last two Shrek films left plenty to be desired. Shrek the Third was considered at the time to be one of the most disappointing animated sequels of all time and isn’t looked upon that much fondly to this day. Shrek Forever After has seen it’s fair share of reappraisal in the coming years (even I will admit that it has aged better based on a recent re-watch of it) but not enough to where people put it on par with the first two Shrek movies.
Say what you will about the track record of sequels for Disney and Pixar but in regards to Toy Story, all four of them receive widespread critical acclaim and enormous box office success! Some might have their haters (most notably Toy Story 4) but they were able to please critics and audience at the time of the release and even now. If Pixar was able to deliver four well received Toy Story films thus far, why not trust them to do it again?
I don’t entirely disagree that DreamWorks sequels tend to stand out more than most sequels from Disney but if we are going by the recent track record and the last two installments from Shrek, there should be just as much if not more skepticism surrounding Shrek 5 as there is with Toy Story 5.
“Toy Story 4 and 5 do not need to exist and Toy Story 3 was suppose to be the true ending!”
You mean like how Shrek 4 and 5 don’t need to exist? Or how Shrek Forever After was suppose to be the true ending as well? So much so that the literal marketing and trailers propped the 4th Shrek film as being the legit final chapter of the story! Did we all just forget about that?!
I’m not going to argue with those that feel like Toy Story 4 and 5 don’t need to exist but like what was the point of say Shrek Forever After and 5 existing outside of dollar signs. They could have ended the story with Shrek The Third as most stories tend to end after a trilogy but they made a 4th one because the Shrek brand was still popular. Yes, you can argue that it was made to write the sins of the previous installment and successfully did so but that doesn’t mean it had to exist. And if you are able to take that into account, Shrek Forever After was designed and promoted as THE FINAL CHAPTER! of the story of Shrek. Do any of you remember the marketing for Toy Story 3 and 4 putting so much emphasis on those being the final chapter of their own respective franchise because I sure don’t?!?!
If you think that Toy Story 4 and 5 don’t need to exist because Toy Story 3 was the perfect ending, that’s totally fine and fair. But, let’s stop this notion that Shrek 5 completely justifies it’s existence alone when the last one made it 100% clear that it was fully intended to be the last one. Nothing remains sacred in Hollywood and it’s pointless to deny that is the same case with Shrek 5.
“Toy Story 5 only exists to make money!”
Repeat after me: ALL MOVIES EXIST TO MAKE MONEY! Not only all movies but ESPECIALLY studio IP movies! There is not a single second of development for these two films or ANY film for that matter where the studio execs are NOT thinking of all the money that they will make by banking on families and nostalgic adults! It’s not an opinion, that’s just a fact!
Toy Story 5 exists because Disney and Pixar are at a time where they need multiple box office hits in a row to justify still playing their films in theaters and it’s best to develop new films based off IPs that have already been successful. Shrek 5 exists because DreamWorks and Universal want another Shrek movie and want to make more sequels to perhaps make up for recent box office losses such as Trolls Band Together and Ruby Gillman, Teenage Kraken. Both of these statements can be correct and there is no shame in admitting!
At the end of the day, it’s all business in Hollywood! If Shrek 5 and Toy Story 5 make a ton of money during the summer two years from now, then it will be a success in the eyes of studio executives regardless of the actual quality of the film. Yes, Toy Story 5 only exists to make money but guess what, the same thing can be said for Shrek 5 as well.
In Conclusion
I know nothing I say can change one’s mind if they are super excited for Shrek 5 and super dreading for Toy Story 5. However, I want to at least get some points across as to the reasons that one is receiving much more hype than the other makes little to no sense to me. It’s okay to be excited for one movie and not for another but at least know why you feel the way you do in regards to Shrek 5 and Toy Story 5.
It’s bad enough we now live in an age where losers on the internet are always wanting to start a culture war on any new movie, show, or game that comes out nowadays. (There are literally folks claiming that Nintendo has gone “woke” because Zelda, the title character of Nintendo’s most successful non-Mario franchise, is getting her own game!) The last thing we need is another one in regards to these two long-running animated franchises that we all grew up with. A fun debate and comparison is all well and good but not when it starts to get needlessly cruel, mean spirited, and political for no reason.
I have nothing against Shrek or Toy Story. I’ve loved both series when I was a kid and I still have fond memories for them as well! I hope nothing but the very best for Shrek 5 and Toy Story 5 when they come out in summer of 2026. However, I do think there is plenty of room for worry and concern considering how they exist more because of the business side of things and not for the artistic side. Which yet again makes me wonder why most folks are propping up Shrek 5 but not Toy Story 5? I guess we will all find out the answer together in two years!
Regardless, Toy Story 5 will release on June 19th, 2026 and Shrek 5 will release on July 1st, 2026!
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