DreamWorks’ plan for animation domination includes a Shrek revival

By Danette Chavez | June 15, 2016 | 2:25pm

Aux Features Film

The Shrek movies saw diminishing returns, both in quality and at the box office, but according to Deadline, DreamWorks Animation is getting a do-ogre. NBCUniversal chief Steve Burke recently announced parent company Comcast’s intentions to resurrect the series, which topped off in 2010 with Shrek Forever After. Comcast recently picked up DreamWorks for $3.8 billion, and it wants to see a return on its investment, starting with more Shrek movies.

The plan is to crank out four animated movies a year, with DreamWorks ceding creative control to Chris Meledandri of Illumination Entertainment, the company behind all those Despicable Me movies. Deadline doesn’t note how many of those annual releases will be new Shrek installments, or whether anyone from the original voice cast—Mike Meyers, Cameron Diaz, Eddie Murphy, and Antonio Banderas—will return for more Shrek. But if NBCUniversal really wants to beef up profits, there will presumably be some crossover with Minions.