Ever since Puss in Boots: The Last Wish, fans have been convinced that Shrek is going to be making a big comeback in the next few years, and they were right.
The cast announcement has come up for Shrek 5 which reveals returning characters as well as Shrek’s teen daughter, but some fans noticed something about her—she’s may be a trans ogre.
Who is Zendaya Playing in Shrek 5?
When the cast was officially announced, it was revealed that all the original cast members Mike Myers, Eddie Murphy, and Cameron Diaz were making a return, but the biggest reveal also came in the form of cast mate Zendaya who fans are assuming is playing Shrek’s daughter Felicia.
For context, Fiona and Shrek had triplets, and they’re named Fergus, Farkle, and Felicia—with Felicia being the only girl. A lot of fans were sure that Felicia was Zendaya’s character, but they noticed something different about her in the teaser.
Is Shreks’ Daughter Trans? Fans Seem Convinced
As some fans had pointed out, Felicia’s eyes in the original films were blue, but in the teaser, the daughter’s eyes are brown. Fergus and Farkle had brown eyes, so it’s possible that the ogre-teen in the teaser was actually one of them.
Admittedly, it’s a huge leap forward if DreamWorks decides to have Zendaya play a trans character. Just thinking about the censorship consequences in China and Russia alone could cost the movie a huge chunk of its worldwide box office if it got banned in those places.
While a lot of people on Twitter have been excited about the possibility, some say that babies' eyes change over time. Or with the redesign for several characters, it was possible that they just decided that she looked better with brown eyes regardless of continuity.
Can Trans Characters Survive the Censorship Anymore?
Though there are some who are already sure that Shrek’s daughter is trans, it’s possible that the heads over at DreamWorks wouldn’t want that to be the case.
Just recently, Pixar’s Win or Lose was said to have removed a storyline for a trans character and it was said that they just stuck with her being a CIS-girl instead, removing storylines where, for example, she would be confused on which bathroom to use.
Admittedly, DreamWorks has had some interesting leaps storywise, like Hiccup from How to Train Your Dragon actually losing his leg in a movie and becoming the first paraplegic lead of an animated franchise.
Let's also not forget the trans character of the Shrek franchise:
A story where a character is trans—and one where it isn’t even the main point of the film—could be just the kind of representation the movie needs to be able to have a prominent trans character while not angering the conservative censors abroad.
Then again, until DreamWorks makes any official announcements, fans should just take a lot of this ‘evidence’ as speculation. If anything, more people are outraged that they updated the character models from the original ones from 2010.
Shrek 5 is expected to be released on Christmas 2026.