Turns out there were many ways Shrek could have been bad. The iconic and one-of-a-kind animated film series about a self-loathing ogre was initially just a series of experiments from creatives, and this was something Mike Myers (Shrek’s voice) detailed in a recent interview. Mike Myers even thought Shrek was a joke at one point, dropping the f-bomb on the concept.
The veteran actor and comedian and Shrek persona revealed it all in an interview with Vulture. Myers even claimed that the pitch for Shrek came about at a rather comedic time. Here’s what he said about it:
“I went to the premiere of ‘Saving Private Ryan,’ and Jeffrey Katzenberg comes up to me afterward in the lobby and brings his daughters, who then do the dance sequence from ‘Austin Powers.’
This was after such a heavy movie, and I was in tears because my parents were in World War II. I was shell-shocked and then they’re doing the dance, and I was like, ‘Yeah, that’s great. Read a room!’ recalled Myers.
Katzenberg then asked him if he would consider being in an animated film and Myers agreed. But then Katzenberg said the title, “Shrek,” and Myers had an adverse reaction:
“Well, that’s the worst f—ing title I’ve ever heard in my life,” Myers exlaimed.
The actor agreed, of course.
Myers quickly associated the title with the sound a person makes after drinking Molson Canadian, which is a Canadian beer. And thus, from this association came the very first experiment for Shrek. He initially gave Shrek a Canadian voice, all thanks to a Canadian beer (which was presumably nasty for Myers’ taste buds).
Mike Myers Liked Scottish Better than Canadian
Myers, however, quickly learned his mistake and second-guessed Shrek’s Canadian voice. So he asked Jeffery Katzenberg to decide to redo all his lines with a Scottish accent instead. This move had a huge chance of not happening because re-recording Shrek’s lines in a Scottish accent would cost them millions to reanimate.
The Shrek voice actor wasn’t convinced that it would cost that much and needed more backup for his creative pivot.
Coincidentally, it was the Saving Private Ryan director, Steven Spielberg, who supported the Shrek overhaul for the Scottish accent. Mike Myers notably called Steven Spielberg himself and said he wanted Shrek to be good and needed his help convincing Katzenberg.
Myers argued that Shrek’s Scottish accent complements Lord Farquaad’s English accent since ‘Scottish people are working class’. Moreover, Shrek eventually learning to love himself seemed more believable with a Scottish accent, according to Myers.
Well, it paid off and both Spielberg and Katzenberg loved the performance since both of them felt like Myers connected more with Shrek thanks to the Scottish accent. Since then, Shrek has become one of Mike Myers’ most iconic roles, right next to Austin Powers.
