Shrek and Puss in Boots are set to be revived, Variety reported. Chris Meledandri, the producer of the Despicable Me franchise, has been given the responsibility of finding fresh story lines to reintroduce the ogre and the warrior cat, the publication added.
The decision to reboot the characters came about after Universal Pictures’s parent company Comcast bought DreamWorks Animation, which made Shrek in 2011.
Meledandri plans to retain the voice cast of Shrek and Puss in Boots, he told Variety. The voice cast includes Mike Myers, Eddie Murphy, Antonio Banderas and Cameron Diaz. “When you look back on those vocal performances, they’re awesome and while you certainly could make a case for a complete reinvention, I find myself responding to my own nostalgic feelings of wanting to go back to those characterisations,” Meledandri told Variety.
Based on William Steig’s fairytale picture book, the Shrek franchise has followed the many adventures and new friendships of a green ogre, known to be a recluse. Puss in Boots, a character named after his signature pair of boots, first appeared in the Shrek franchise. The character was first seen in a standalone film in 2011 in which he is a fugitive on the run determined to get back his honour.