The Shrek movie series saw the title ogre meet a variety of characters, of which some are now some of the most memorable ones in the whole franchise, even if some of them only appeared once. Back in 2001, DreamWorks brought the computer-animated fantasy movie Shrek, based on the 1990s children’s picture book of the same name by William Steig. With some changes to make it more family-friendly, Shrek ended up parodying fairy tales and their movie adaptations, particularly those by Disney, and it became a massive success thanks to its story and characters, which were unlike those of previous fairy tale movies.
Shrek follows the title ogre, who in order to regain control of his swamp, makes a deal with Lord Farquaad to rescue Princess Fiona for him. With the help of Donkey, Shrek successfully rescues Fiona, with whom he ends up falling in love as they had a lot more in common than they thought. Shrek’s massive success made way for three sequels, various short films, and a spinoff movie series starring Puss in Boots. The Shrek saga gave the audience some truly iconic and unforgettable characters, and here are the 10 best characters in all Shrek movies.
10 Fairy Godmother (Jennifer Saunders)
Movie debut: Shrek 2, Number of appearances: 1 (plus a cameo)
Fairy Godmother was introduced in Shrek 2, where she reprimanded King Harold after learning Fiona married Shrek, as they had made a deal for her son, Prince Charming, to rescue Fiona and marry her in exchange for Harold’s own happy ending. Fairy Godmother gaslit Shrek and Fiona and tried to trick the latter into believing Charming was Shrek in human form so they would kiss and fall in love, but it didn’t work out as she wanted. Fairy Godmother was killed at the end of Shrek 2 when she aimed a blast at Shrek that was deflected by King Harold, who reverted to his frog form while Fairy Godmother was turned into bubbles. Fairy Godmother had a final cameo appearance in the end credits of Shrek Forever After.
9 Merlin (Eric Idle)
Movie debut: Shrek the Third, Number of appearances: 1
Shrek the Third saw the ogre, Donkey, and Puss traveling to Worcestershire Academy to convince Fiona’s 16-year-old cousin, Artie, to take the throne of Far Far Away. However, on their way back to the kingdom, their ship crashed and they got stranded on an island, where they met Arthur’s retired teacher, Merlin. The wizard retired due to a nervous breakdown, and he was quite eccentric and his spells didn’t always turn out well – case in point, his teleportation spell caused Donkey and Puss to switch bodies. Merlin was responsible for bringing an extra dose of comedy in Shrek the Third, but he didn’t return in the fourth movie.
8 Doris (Larry King)
Movie debut: Shrek 2, Number of appearances: 3
Doris is one of Cinderella’s ugly step-sisters, but unlike the original tale and Disney’s version, this one wasn’t evil. Doris made her debut in Shrek 2, but she had a bigger presence in Shrek the Third, where she was already one of Shrek and Fiona’s best friends, so much so that she attended Fiona’s baby shower. Like the rest of the princesses, Doris could fight and defend herself, and she was briefly seen in Shrek Forever After.
7 Pinocchio (Cody Cameron)
Movie debut: Shrek, Number of appearances: 4
Pinocchio made his debut in Shrek, but it wasn’t until Shrek 2 that he became one of Shrek’s friends and ed the mission to rescue him, Donkey, and Puss in Boots, and in Shrek the Third, he starred in one of the funniest moments in the Shrek movie series when he came up with a twisted up version of the truth in order to not tell a lie but not give anything away, either. In the alternate timeline in Shrek Forever After, he tried to sell Geppetto, with his face painted green, as Shrek to win the “deal of a lifetime” that Rumpelstiltskin was offering, but Rumpel couldn’t be fooled.
6 Prince Charming (Rupert Everett)
Movie debut: Shrek 2, Number of appearances: 3 (plus a cameo)
Prince Charming made his first appearance in the Shrek saga in Shrek 2, alongside his mother. Charming was childish and always did what his mother told him to, and after failing to make Fiona fall in love with him (through a potion that King Harold never gave to Fiona), he returned in Shrek the Third with a new plan to kill Shrek and avenge his mother. With the help of other villains and Rapunzel, Charming took over Far Far Away and planned to kill Shrek as part of a play, but the ogre was rescued right on time. After faking to have been wounded, Shrek pushed Charming aside and Dragon knocked a tower down onto him. Just like his mother, Prince Charming had a cameo appearance in the end credits of Shrek Forever After.
5 Fiona (Cameron Diaz)
Movie debut: Shrek, Number of appearances: 4
Years before the events of Shrek, Princess Fiona was placed under a curse that transformed her into an ogre every night, which is why she was hidden in a dragon-guarded tower. The only way to break the curse was with “true love’s kiss”, which would also change her to “love’s true form”, and that’s why she stayed as an ogre, as Shrek was her true love. Fiona and Shrek became parents to ogre triplets in Shrek the Third, and an alternate version of her was introduced in Shrek Forever After. Fiona is unlike most fairy tale princesses, as she’s not only educated and well-mannered, but she also knows how to fight and enjoy the little things in life… and she’s not afraid of doing ogre stuff like bathing in mud.
4 Gingerbread Man (Conrad Vernon)
Movie debut: Shrek, Number of appearances: 4
Also known as Gingy, the Gingerbread Man’s first appearance in Shrek left quite an impression, as he was being tortured by Lord Farquaad for information on the whereabouts of the rest of the fairy tale creatures. Lord Farquaad cut Gingy’s legs, but by the time of the events of Shrek 2, he had made a full recovery. In Shrek 2, he led a giant gingerbread man made by The Muffin Man to storm Prince Charming’s castle, and in Shrek the Third, he took part in the big rescue of Shrek. In Shrek Forever After’s alternate timeline, Gingy was fighting animal crackers as a gladiator and was eaten by Puss in Boots – luckily, in the real, main timeline, he was alive and well.
3 Puss in Boots (Antonio Banderas)
Movie debut: Shrek 2, Number of appearances: 3
Puss in Boots made his first appearance in the Shrek movie series in Shrek 2, where he was hired by Fiona’s father, King Harold, to kill Shrek. Unable to defeat Shrek, Puss in Boots confessed and Shrek spared his life, so Puss offered to him and Donkey. Puss and Donkey ended up becoming best friends, even if they argued a couple of times. In the alternate timeline in Shrek Forever After, Puss was overweight and became Fiona’s pet after his retirement, but just like Donkey, he ended up becoming Shrek’s friend. Puss in Boots is the only character from the Shrek saga to get his own spinoff movies.
2 Shrek (Mike Myers)
Movie debut: Shrek, Number of appearances: 4
Of course, the star of the Shrek franchise is one of the best characters. Shrek is cynical, cranky, and doesn’t like to be around people (or animals), but even though he can be very intimidating, he’s actually harmless and just wants some peace and solitude in his swamp. Marrying Fiona put him in an uncomfortable position as he was now part of the royal family of Far Far Away, and by the time of the events of Shrek Forever After, he was a celebrity in Far Far Away. Still, Shrek brought a special type of humor to every one of his movies, and his sarcasm and dark humor were key to his and the saga’s success.
1 Donkey (Eddie Murphy)
Movie debut: Shrek, Number of appearances: 4
Donkey has the special power of being able to talk, much to Shrek’s annoyance. However, he goes on to become Shrek and Fiona’s best friend and sidekick, as well as the biggest comic relief in the Shrek franchise. Of course, a big part of the charm and comedy of Donkey comes from Eddie Murphy, but the Shrek movies also made sure to give him his own storyline, with a romance included. Donkey fell in love with Dragon, married her, and had children with her: dronkeys, a combination of dragons and donkeys. An alternate version of Donkey was introduced in Shrek Forever After, but he still ended up by Shrek’s side.
