Even at 23 years old, Shrek still holds a special place in audiences' hearts. The Mike Myers-led animated comedy first released in 2001 and introduced audiences to the iconic green ogre. The fire of Shrek's fandom isn't just flickering softly though, it's blazing strong as the film has catapulted to the top of the Netflix streaming chart after being added to the streamer's catalog.

Earlier in the week, Shrek sat at No. 3 on Netflix's Top 10, but the film has quickly risen to the top spot, overtaking the Netflix Original Unfrosted, a Pop-Tart origin story. However, it doesn't sit alone in that Top 10, as Shrek's popularity has also bolstered the viewing figures of one of its many sequels, Shrek Forever After. Shrek's success on Netflix marks another step in a long line of successes for DreamWorks Animations films on the streaming platform. Past successes include Trolls, Turbo, and Puss in Boots: The Last Wish. You can see the current Top 10 below:

The popularity of Shrek on Netflix comes following the recent announcement that a fifth movie is now in the works. While details remain largely unknown at this time, Shrek 5 is expected to bring back the core cast of Myers, Eddie Murphy, and Cameron Diaz, and is eyeing a 2025 release date.

Shrek Was a Punishment Project for DreamWorks Animators

Shrek

PG

Release Date

May 18, 2001

Director

Andrew Adamson , Vicky Jenson

Cast

Mike Myers , Eddie Murphy , Cameron Diaz , John Lithgow , Vincent Cassel , Peter Dennis

Runtime

90

Hindsight is a powerful thing. Looking back at Shrek nowadays, the film seemed like a surefire hit. A great cast, a hilarious script, and great (at the time) animation all combined into an Academy-Award winning movie which has evolved into its own franchise. However, during production, DreamWorks had almost no belief in the project, so much so that Shrek was actually a punishment project for some of their animators.

Animators working on Prince of Egypt, whose work wasn't up to standard, were sent to work on Shrek. This was revealed in Nicole Laporte's book, Men Who Would Be King: An Almost Epic Tale of Moguls, Movies, and a Company Called DreamWorks, Laporte revealed that the punishment even had a name - being "Shreked."

Related

Shrek 2 Actually Holds Up Much Better Than the Original and Here's Why

At two decades old, Shrek 2 continues to hold up today as an excellent sequel film.

Ironically, Shrek is still one of the most successful DreamWorks animated movies of all-time, with the first four movies in the franchise sitting at the top of DreamWorks Animation's lifetime earnings list (according to BoxOfficeMojo). Meanwhile, The Prince of Egypt was an unremarkable success for the studio. The film has since become a cult-classic though, marking one of the last times DreamWorks utilized the hand-drawn style of animation.