The first animated tests of “Shrek,” thought lost for over 20 years, have been found and reveal a completely different early version of the beloved franchise…
Shrek is the cult animated saga of an entire generation, the one that allowed DreamWorks to compete with Pixar and Disney. A scathing parody of our favorite fairy tales, the story of the greenish and cynical ogre, who must save Princess Fiona trapped in a tower guarded by a dragon, alongside his faithful companion, the exuberant donkey, was a dazzling success. Official selection at the Cannes Film Festival and first to receive the Oscar for best animated film, Shrek has entered the legend – and will be entitled to a fifth opus, more than 14 years after the last part (and more than 23 years after the first!).
But the original idea for the film was quite different… After being considered lost for over 20 years, the first animation tests for the project have just surfaced online. While the first full-length film was released in 2001, a different version was initially in development in 1995. This original version starred Chris Farley (not Mike Myers) as the green protagonist, who brought it to life using early motion capture technologies.
Now, Zoom Art Studio, involved in the production design of the film, has posted the lost footage online. In the clip, Shrek can be seen dancing to James Brown’s “I Got You (I Feel Good)” as he attacks a knight.
A VERY DIFFERENT VERSION
The video’s description reveals that the original idea for Shrek was a “dark and edgy low-budget film”, a far cry from the parody of fairy tale stories that the final product became. As evident in the images, the ogre’s design was also slimmer, with emphasis placed on his exaggerated facial expressions.
Chris Farley having recorded many of his lines for the film before his death in 1997, new footage may also resurface one day, giving us more context about the original film and its story.
Shrek 5 is currently in development, while its spinoff franchise, Puss in Boots, released its final installment, The Last Quest, in 2022.
The first three parts of Shrek can be rewatched on Netflix. The fourth is, for its part, available on MyCanal.