A movie so famous that it needs no introduction, Shrek has finally returned to the Netflix UK library. Its re-addition on Saturday, March 1 has finally sated fans desperate for a way to stream it.
The classic animated movie, which famously won the inaugural Oscar for Best Animated Movie in 2001 and remains an absolute classic to this day, hasn't been on the world's biggest streaming platform for a while. According to NewonNetflix it was removed from Netflix in April 2022, three years back, though through February it was briefly added to iPlayer.
As soon as it was re-added to Netflix, Shrek leapt onto the streamer's top 10 most-watched movies list in the UK, showing how keen people are to stream the movie.
Some of this interest may come from growing excitement towards Shrek 5, as well as cynicism towards it and a brewing controversy. This quintequal, scheduled for release right at the end of 2026, will return the franchise to the big screen 14 years after Shrek Forever After (not including Puss in Boots-related sequels, including 2022's The Last Wish).
The excitement for Shrek 5, which is due to bring back Mike Myers, Eddie Murphy and Cameron Diaz and introduce Zendaya, has been tempered by a controversy bubbling over the last week.
On Thursday, February 27, Universal Pictures shared a video announcing the casting of Zendaya, however fans immediately noticed the changed animation style for Shrek 5, and they weren't happy. All over the internet people were criticizing the redesigned characters and changed look, and the controversy was big enough that even the BBC reported on it.
With almost two years to go until Shrek 5's release, fans are hoping that Dreamworks will change the look of the ogre to be more in line with earlier movies. There's precedent for this too, with Sonic the Hedgehog facing similar backlash to early previews and being changed in time for its eventual release.
But for now, fans who want more Shrek animation in the vein of the original can now watch it on Netflix, where the first two sequels are also available to view.
If you live in the US Shrek isn't on Netflix but can be watched on Peacock instead.
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