Featured Image Credit: Universal Pictures / YouTube
Topics: Entertainment, Memes, Movies, Zendaya
Sarah Halle Corey
Topics: Entertainment, Memes, Movies, Zendaya
I don’t think there’s anything Zendaya can’t do. Deliver a heart-wrenching and powerful performance in Euphoria? Check. Make everyone fall in love with her in Challengers? Check. Fight as an interstellar desert warrior in Dune? Check, or however you say check in their space language in Dune. But there’s one thing Zendaya hasn’t done yet: Conquer the iconic world of Shrek. Well, all of that is about to change now that Zendaya is playing Shrek’s daughter.
That’s right, Zendaya is playing Shrek’s daughter in Shrek 5, and now Shrek’s daughter memes are taking over the internet, exactly as they should. Shrek has been a part of our cultural landscape for nearly 25 years, since the first movie premiered in 2001. So it’s only fitting that a huge star like Zendaya joins the cast for the fifth installment of the franchise, And, not only is Zendaya joining the cast, but she’s playing Shrek’s daughter. She’s carrying on the legacy of the Shrek family (Does Shrek have a last name? Something to ponder), for the next generation.
Zendaya famously puts a lot of thought into choosing her roles. In a 2021 Interview Magazine feature, she said, “There’s always a gut feeling—when something feels like it’s for you. You just feel immediately connected to the character, the material, like it’s something you have to do, something you can’t let go of.” I love the idea of Zendaya getting the script for Shrek 5, reading it, and being like, ‘Yes, I must do this. I must join Shrek in the swamp.”
On February 27, fans got their first peek at Zendaya’s Shrek 5 character in the teaser trailer for the movie. In it, Shrek (Mike Meyers), Donkey (Eddie Murphy), and Fiona (Cameron Diaz) are concerned when Magic Mirror shows them Shrek memes (yes, actual Shrek memes that have somehow made their way into Shrek’s universe), but Shrek’s daughter is truly horrified by the display. She pops up on screen — rocking bangs and a nose ring, I might add — to complain to her dad, in true teenage glory. It’s a sight to behold, and as much as we can’t tear our eyes away, we’ll all have to wait a bit to see more. Shrek 5 doesn’t come out in theaters until December 23, 2026. At least in the meantime, we can all enjoy these memes of Zendaya as Shrek’s daughter.