With Shrek 5 on the horizon, Disney+ has quietly pulled the entire existing franchise onto its platform, giving American subscribers their first chance to watch the DreamWorks Animation films through The Walt Disney Company‘s streaming service.
An Unlikely Home for the Ogre
The fact that the Shrek franchise is landing on Disney+ at all carries a fair bit of irony. DreamWorks Animation was founded in 1994 by Jeffrey Katzenberg, a former Disney executive who had been instrumental in driving the Disney Renaissance before parting ways with the studio. Katzenberg launched DreamWorks alongside Steven Spielberg and David Geffen with the explicit goal of competing with his old employer in the family entertainment space.
The rivalry took shape quickly. DreamWorks released Antz on October 2, 1998, just weeks before Disney and Pixar's A Bug's Life (1998) hit theaters — two suspiciously similar films arriving in near-identical windows. Then came Shrek (2001), which legend has it was initially used as a punishment assignment for animators who didn't meet expectations on The Prince of Egypt (1998). A strange ogre romance turned out to be the franchise that outlasted almost everything either studio produced that decade.
Four Films, One Bundle
As of April 2, all four entries in the main Shrek saga — Shrek (2001), Shrek 2 (2004), Shrek the Third (2007), and Shrek Forever After (2010) — are streaming on Disney+ in the United States. The catch: they're only accessible to subscribers on the Hulu bundle tier.
If you peel back our layers, you'll find all the Shrek films with Hulu on Disney+ for bundle subscribers. 🧅
If you peel back our layers, you'll find all the Shrek films with Hulu on Disney+ for bundle subscribers. 🧅 pic.twitter.com/XY48VemoXw
— Disney+ (@DisneyPlus) April 2, 2026
The films have been available on Disney+ in some international markets for a while, but this marks the first time U.S. audiences can find them on the platform. Disney does not own the DreamWorks Animation titles; a licensing deal is what makes them available here. Universal Parks and Resorts continues to hold the theme park rights to the franchise.
Shrek 5 is slated to premiere in 2027, making now the perfect moment to revisit the series from the beginning.
Are you surprised to see the Shrek franchise on Disney+? Share your thoughts with Disney Fanatic in the comments!
