
Universal Pictures Switches Up These Family Movie Dates
By Movieguide® Contributor
Universal Pictures is making some adjustments to its 2026 release calendar.
“The studio announced Friday that DreamWorks Animation’s SHREK 5 is now set for release on Wednesday, Dec. 23, 2026, after previously having been dated for July 1, 2026,” The Hollywood Reporter said. “Walt Dohrn and Conrad Vernon are directing SHREK 5 with Brad Ableson as co-director. Gina Shay and Chris Meledandri produce the film that sees the return of voice stars Mike Myers (Shrek), Eddie Murphy (Donkey) and Cameron Diaz (Fiona).”
But MINIONS 3 moved up to July 1, 2026. Universal previously had it slated for June 30, 2027. Pierre Coffin will direct and voice the minions, and Brian Lynch will write the script.
“Universal also announced that an untitled event film from Illumination will now take over MINIONS 3’s previous release date of Wednesday, June 30, 2027, after the untitled movie was initially planned to hit theaters on March 19, 2027,” THR reported.
“The Minions were last seen on the big screen in 2024’s DESPICABLE ME 4, which followed the 2022 release of the characters’ second spinoff film, MINIONS: THE RISE OF GRU,” THR stated. “Between the DESPICABLE ME and MINIONS movies, the Minions characters have helped push the franchise to nearly $5 billion at the worldwide box office.”
While the minions first appeared in the Movieguide® Award-winning movie DESPICABLE ME, the spin-off lacks the charm and values of the original franchise.
According to the Movieguide® review, MINIONS is unacceptable for children as it contains a, “Fairly strong pagan worldview, with a miscellaneous immorality and violence throughout showing crime as fun and evil as admirable and something to be followed, there is no change of heart from their despicable ways, they continue to find more crime to commit, plus some homosexual elements includes two cases of cross dressing, and a homosexual stylist designs the Queen’s dress, one character becomes selfless at one point; no foul language; strong comic and slapstick violence includes many violent deaths occur that are very harsh, violence is portrayed in a fun way, an execution is ordered, all of the villains chase the minions trying any way possible to kill them, one character has a torture chamber; characters shot from behind wear thongs; alcohol use; no smoking or drugs; and, strong miscellaneous immorality includes the title characters are always trying to find the worst and most evil villain to serve, a family robs stores together on the way to Villain-con, villains are seen as celebrities and something to aim toward, a hat is used to hypnotize guards into submission, the queen after being dethroned disrespects England and is found drinking in a bar.”
READ MORE: MINIONS: THE RISE OF GRU REVIEW
Illumination has MINION 3’s plot under wraps, but Gru, voiced by Steve Carell, is likely to appear in the movie. Screen Rant guesstimates that “there is a possible return for Alan Arkin’s Wild Knuckles after he and Gru rode off into the sunset together. Other returnees could include the likes of Will Arnett and Steve Coogan, who have made cameos in several movies and reprised their role in MINIONS: THE RISE OF GRU.”
Meanwhile, Movieguide® has honored the SHREK franchise multiple times.
“We’re here to commend you,” Movieguide® Publisher Dr. Ted Baehr said the year SHREK won a Teddy Bear Award® for Best Movie for Families. “We’re also here to equip you and encourage you. You are representing this country to the world. That’s a great responsibility.”
Each subsequent SHREK movie was nominated for Teddy Bear Awards®, as well.
SHREK 5 will come to the big screen in time to mark 25 years from the first SHREK movie’s release date. The fourth SHREK movie, SHREK FOREVER AFTER, came out 15 years ago. Since then, there’s been two PUSS IN BOOTS spin-off movies. The first four SHREK movies made over $2.9 billion globally.
All SHREK and PUSS IN BOOTS movies have won Movieguide® Teddy Bear Awards®.
DreamWorks hasn’t revealed the new SHREK movie’s storyline yet, but Eddie Murphy, who voices Donkey, told Collider in June that his character will eventually have “his own movie,” which is something he’s been rooting for.
He said last year, “You know, they did PUSS IN BOOTS movie. I was like, ‘They should have done a Donkey movie. Donkey is funnier than Puss in Boots.’ I mean, I love Puss in Boots, but he ain’t funny as the Donkey.”
READ MORE: WILL THIS ICONIC CHARACTER RETURN FOR SHREK 5?