The cast of Shrek 5 is “shreks-panding.” Marcello Hernández and Skyler Gisondo are joining the cast of the upcoming animated sequel as the sons of Shrek. The news broke during the annual Macy’s Thanksgiving Day Parade, which featured an enormous Shrek balloon.
According to reports, Hernández and Gisondo will play Fergus and Farkle, two-thirds of Shrek and Princess Fiona’s triplets, born at the end of Shrek the Third; their sister, Felicia, will be voiced by Zendaya. On deck to reprise their voice roles in the film are Mike Myers (Shrek), Cameron Diaz (Fiona), and Eddie Murphy (Donkey). The plot of the film is being kept under wraps for now, but it will be directed by Conrad Vernon (Shrek 2) and Walt Dohrn (Trolls), both of whom have voiced characters in the franchise’s past installments with Gingie and Rumpletsiltskin, respectively, and will be penned by Michael McCullers (The Boss Baby). When it was first officially announced, it was to be released on July 1, 2026, but has been pushed back several times; it is now slated to hit theaters on June 30, 2027.
Who Are Marcello Hernández and Skyler Gisondo?
Hernández is the first Saturday Night Live cast member from Generation Z, joining the cast of the venerable sketch comedy show in 2022; his recurring characters include wedding disruptor Domingo, Weekend Update’s Movie Guy, and Grant, one-half of The Couple You Can’t Believe Are Together. This year, he made his movie debut in Happy Gilmore 2, and is set to lend his voice to The Angry Birds Movie 3 and star in the Kevin Hart comedy 72 Hours. Gisondo began his career as a child actor, starring on The Bill Engvall Show; he subsequently had prominent roles on the series Santa Clarita Diet and The Righteous Gemstones, and in the films Vacation, Booksmart, and this summer’s Superman, where he played Clark Kent’s pal Jimmy Olsen. He’ll reprise his role as Olsen in a new spin-off TV series. He’s next set to star as Ben Stiller‘s son in the comedy Focker-In-Law.
Kicking off with Shrek in 2001, an adaptation of the classic 1990 picture book by William Steig, the Shrek franchise has so far produced four theatrical films (with a fifth on the way), two animated TV specials, and two spin-off films starring breakout character Puss-in-Boots (Antonio Banderas). A spin-off film starring Eddie Murphy‘s Donkey is also reportedly in the works, with a tentative release window in 2028.
Shrek 5 will be released on June 30, 2027.
via Collider