‘Ogres are like onions’: 22 Memes for Shrek Fans Wanting to Go Back to the Swamp

Giuliana Tiscioni • Writer

Jul 2, 2026 2:00 PM EDT

Is the Shrek nostalgia catching up to anyone else?

It's interesting to see what nostalgia does to industries. This year we have a comeback of some of the most beloved early aughts movies. Think Scary Movie, Shrek, Toy Story 5, and the list goes on. Suddenly, instead of awaiting new and original productions, we have traveled back in time to 2004 movie posters. It's not a bad thing per se; we all love those movies, and they made us really happy. For reference, we still watch them as comfort movies. Profiting on nostalgia is nothing new, and there's little we can do about it. We're still gonna watch these movies no matter how offended we might be after the trailers.

Whatever happened with Shrek is an interesting thing, a whole different monster. DreamWorks didn't really have the habit of exploding a franchise just because. In fact, their sagas are usually really well planned for three to four movies. I don't know all their reasoning for bringing back a franchise that ended sixteen years ago. Wow, sixteen! I went to the movies to see Shrek with my mom and brother. Now, I feel old…

Anyway, bringing back the franchise. They must have had their reasons, even if we don't really get them. I'm not gonna try to figure them out other than to say that this nostalgia trend is going to catch up to them very soon. Happens to all of us eventually.

Instead, I'm just gonna sit here and remember why I love the original movies. Because, yeah, the fourth one wasn't the best either, but we can pretend it's not there. I also saw a lot of trash-talk about the third, but personally, I absolutely LOVE the third movie. I end up cackling every single time I see the medieval high school scene, so we're not taking any Shrek 3 slander here.

Every time I watch these movies as an adult, I end up baffled in front of the TV thinking, "How the heck did they get away with that joke in a kid's movie?" But hey, that's the magic of filmmaking. And DreamWorks has a Master's in doing movies for children that are also fun for the parents to watch. That's what keeps them relevant after years. You enjoyed them as a five-year-old, and you can enjoy them in your twenties and thirties. FYI, all the people at the theater when the fifth film comes out are gonna be older than twenty-four. So, let's not dwell on the past and focus on memes that are "better out than in!"