For over twenty years now, DreamWorks Pictures has been bringing us some of the best-loved animated movies of all time. Sure, technically they’re kids’ movies, but what adult hasn’t cracked out their Shrek DVD from time-to-time to get some of that early 2000s nostalgia? DreamWorks movies can take us to far-flung lands filled with magical creatures or can craft meaningful tales closer to home. The company may not have been around for as long as their main competitor—Walt Disney Pictures—but it’s still made a huge impression on people of all ages.
Of course, when a company creates movies that quickly gain a huge following, the more dedicated fans out there love to let their imaginations run wild. They create fan art, write fanfiction, and sometimes even put together their own interesting theories about deeper meanings hidden in these favorite films. Some of these theories are pretty plausible; others are totally ridiculous and could never, ever be true. Those ideas that fall into the latter category are frequently hilarious and mostly just silly—but hey, at least one person out there believes them!
If you’re ready to delve deep into the weird and wonderful world of DreamWorks fan theories, then you’re in luck. We’ve collected together some of the strangest, most out-there ideas that dedicated fans have worked hard to prove. Sadly, they haven’t always been successful—no matter how much we might wish that their theories are true! Here are just some of the strangest, most entertaining DreamWorks theories out there that are too good—or just too plain weird—to be true.
25 Ignorance Is Bliss
Once again, here’s a How To Train Your Dragon theory that’ll make your heart hurt. You know how Toothless has a damaged tail that prevents him from being able to fly, and Hiccup is technically the reason why that injury happened? Well, one fan theorist on Reddit thinks that Toothless isn’t actually aware that Hiccup is the one who injured him. While, as the Redditor notes, Hiccup does openly discuss this fact in front of Toothless, how do we know that this dragon can fully understand English? In short, we don’t, so this theory can neither be proved nor disproved.
24 God Vs The Gods
DreamWorks’ The Prince of Egypt is one of those classic Bible movies that we all shed a tear at back in our childhood years. The story of Moses’ life as the titular Prince was transformed into an emotional musical masterpiece by the studio. As well as becoming totally beloved, the movie has given rise to an interesting fan theory. As one Redditor notes, each of the plagues that the God in this story inflicts on the world seems to directly attack a prominent Egyptian God! Is there a secret “God vs The Gods” storyline in the film? Quite possibly!
23 All Hail The Armadillo
You know the theory that Miguel and Tulio in The Road To El Dorado were secretly gods all along? Well, according to this MTV article, it was the ever-present armadillo Bibo that was actually a god—not these two puny humans! Bibo trailed Miguel and Tulio for pretty much the whole movie—including at times when they made remarkable discoveries, progressed in their goals, and escaped mortal peril. Was Bibo secretly using his godly powers to help his human buddies along? Quite possibly! Anything’s possible in the DreamWorks universe—according to the fans, anyway.
22 Shark-Topia?
If we’re being honest, Shark Tale isn’t exactly DreamWorks’ most popular movie. However, it has enough fans for a couple of theories about it to exist. A recent one posted on Reddit is that Shark Tale takes place in the same universe as Disney’s Zootopia: a world where animals—and, apparently, fish—have evolved to be highly intelligent.
Somehow, we doubt that this link is genuine.
Why would Disney and DreamWorks work together on this? Also, Zootopia came out a decade after Shark Tale—a bit late for a shared universe to exist, right?
21 Where Did All The Ogres Go?
At the start of the very first Shrek movie, it seems like the titular ogre is the only one of his kind around. Even when the soldiers of Duloc start to round up magical creatures, no ogres are present.
Question is, where did they all go?
One particularly dark fan theory suggests that there are no other ogres because Shrek “got rid of” them all before the first movie started. Let’s not ruin our childhoods by calling this theory accurate, shall we? And anyway, why would Shrek do this? Surely his desire to be alone isn’t THAT strong!
20 Donkey’s Sinister Origins
Have you ever wondered where exactly Donkey from Shrek came from? Where was he born? How did he learn to talk? So many questions, and so few answers… Until now. There’s one slightly dark but kinda plausible theory about Donkey that’s been doing the rounds on the Internet.
Apparently, Donkey is from the world of Disney’s Pinocchio!
He’s one of the little boys on Pleasure Island who gets turned into a donkey. That’s why he can speak English—he was a human once! It’s thought so sad, we’re going to assume it’s incorrect for our own emotional wellbeing.
19 Who Is The Boy On The Moon?
We’ve all seen the famous DreamWorks logo: a boy sat fishing on a crescent moon. However, fewer of us have considered who that boy actually is. Is he just a representation of the mythical “man in the moon”, or is something deeper going on? Well, one Redditor seems to think the latter is the case. They believe that he’s actually David, the child-like android from Steven Spielberg’s AI: Artificial Intelligence, who’s finally realized his dream of living in a fairytale land, far away from our troubled Earth. Way to break all of our hearts…
18 The Gods Of El Dorado
You know how the whole point of The Road To El Dorado was that Miguel and Tulio weren’t actually gods—the people of El Dorado just thought they were? Well, what if they were celestial beings after all? One Reddit user makes this argument! The evidence: Tulio and Miguel don’t bleed when they’re injured. They fit the Aztec images of the “gods come to Earth” pretty well. They manage to do some remarkable things throughout the movie. Could it be that the whole premise of the movie incorrect? Hopefully not, or we’re going be left with major trust issues.
17 Madagascar’s “Human-Like” Animals
In DreamWorks’ series of Madagascar movies, the animals featured don’t really obey the rules of nature. Alex the Lion walks around on two legs; a giraffe and a hippo fall in love; all of the animals have human mannerisms.
Or do they?
One Redditor believes that while the animals may believe they’re exhibiting human behavior, it’s all in their heads. To people looking on, they just look like normal creatures. The question is… Why would DreamWorks not address this in the films? A lot of jokes could have been made about it! We doubt it’s a legit theory…
16 Time-Traveling Bees
DreamWorks’ Bee Movie has become somewhat infamous among the general public for being a bit of a weird film. A woman… falling for a bee? Just why? However, not everyone hates this movie enough to pretend it doesn’t exist. In fact, one Reddit user has gone as far as to pen a theory that states that all of the bees are Timelords—as in, from Doctor Who. Apparently, their hive is a TARDIS—that’s how they manage to fit an entire society in such a small structure. Just when you think Bee Movie couldn’t get any stranger…
15 The Croods’ Secret Sequel
Remember The Croods, the kinda charming DreamWorks movie about a family of cave-people trying to stay alive in a dangerous world? Well, some fans of the film are convinced that it’s a prequel to a show about another prehistoric family we all know and love: The Flintstones. In The Croods, genius inventor Guy begins to use prehistoric animals as utilities and tools, much to the surprise of his new friends. This is just like The Flintstones’ use of critters as furniture, handy objects, and more! Coincidence? Probably, but hey, the fans can dream!
14 How To Train Your Mean Dragon
Apologies in advance, How To Train Your Dragon fans—you’re about to read something controversial and practically upsetting. According to one fan theory, Hiccup’s beloved dragon buddy Toothless is actually a pretty evil psychopath masquerading as an adorable, friendly critter. According to this school of thought, Toothless deliberately bit off Hiccup’s foot: he didn’t lose it “accidentally” in a fire. So much nope. Sure, some of the evidence for this one seems measured… But we refuse to believe that Toothless is evil. It’s just not okay. Consider this theory rejected.
13 The Dark Side Of Boss Baby
DreamWorks’ Boss Baby seems like the kind of irreverent family film that couldn’t possibly have a dark side lurking beneath its kinda goofy surface.
However, in the world of fan theories, nothing is safe.
According to one Reddit user, the movie is actually a tragic tale about the passing of a baby. Yep, when the Boss Baby disappears near the end of the movie, that’s an allegory for infant mortality. In the movie, it’s explained as the baby going back to Baby Corp. now that his mission is complete. However, that’s far too wholesome for some fans, apparently!
12 Kung Fu Humans
Have you ever wondered why there are no humans in the Kung Fu Panda universe? Well, one DreamWorks fan has—and the result is a pretty disturbing fan theory that we really hope isn’t true. Apparently, there were once people in this version of Ancient China, but they used their kung-fu powers to transform into animals. These humans-in-disguise then, er, spent time with actual animals to produce the intelligent, martial-arts-loving creatures we see in the movies. The remaining humans presumably perished until only the human-animal hybrids were left. Please… just… no.
11 King Julien Of WikiLeaks
Okay, this fan theory verges into “so bizarre, it’s just hilarious” territory. You know King Julien, the flamboyant lemur from the Madagascar franchise? Well, one fan of this series has decided that he’s actually WikiLeaks founder Julian Assange in disguise. Yep, really. According to the theory, this is Assange’s grand plan to ensure that he evades capture by one of the various governments who don’t really like him that much. How did Assange transform into a lemur, I hear you ask? Well, that’s never explained. This fan definitely has too much time on their hands.
10 Chickens Are The New Humans
This fan theory is actually a crossover between DreamWorks’ family classic Chicken Run, and Netflix’s Orange Is The New Black. In OITNB, one of the urban legends amongst Litchfield’s inmates is that there’s a rogue chicken that is apparently magical. This chicken can allegedly sneak in and out of Litchfield’s grounds, despite there being a huge barbed-wire fence blocking its way.
What chicken do we know that’s great at planning grand escapes?
Ginger from Chicken Run. They’re the same bird—according to one fan, at least. It’s a far-fetched idea, but an amusing one too.
9 The Reincarnated Penguins
Sorry to break your hearts, guys, but even the penguins of Madagascar aren’t safe from being subject to upsetting and childhood-ruining fan theories. The most heartbreaking of all has to be the idea that each penguin is actually the reincarnated soul of a soldier who passed away on duty in World War Two. Yep, really. That’s why the penguins act like a group of army guys so much of the time—they actually were marines in a past life. The theory is surprisingly detailed, but we still don’t really want to believe that it’s true.
8 The iCarly Connection
In what must be the strangest but apparently “confirmed” crossover of all time, it turns out that a fan theory connecting Bee Movie and the popular Nickelodeon show iCarly might just have some credence to it.
Well, kind of.
According to MTV, iCarly’s Nathan Kress gave the green light to a theory stating that his character, Freddie Benson, is the son of Bee Movie’s Barry Benson and Vanessa Bloome. That’s right—he’s the child of a BEE and a HUMAN WOMAN. Sorry, but no amount of assurances from Kress will convince us that this theory is legit…
7 The Truth About Space Dad
In the DreamWorks movie Megamind, the eponymous blue, alien anti-hero has the ability to assume various “disguises”. Most of these are based on real people, although one seems to be a total invention: Space Dad, a fatherly figure who Megamind uses to train a new superhero.
Is Space Dad truly nothing more than an invention, though?
One Redditor thinks not, and suggests that Space Dad is actually the father of Megamind’s nemesis, Metro-Man. Megamind stored this disguise in a watch just in case it ever came in handy. It’s a tenuous theory, to say the least!
6 Decoding The Dragon-Donkey Relationship
The whole Dragon-Donkey romance plot is one of the weirdest parts of the Shrek franchise. Sure, they say that opposites attract, but there must be a limit! Anyway, one Shrek fan on DeviantArt—Aotearoa-Geek13—has tried to explain away the weirdness of this relationship in an interesting but probably untrue theory. Apparently, Dragon was once a donkey herself, but was cursed and forced to remain a different species for all eternity. However, her attraction to other donkeys is still there—hence why she falls for Shrek’s best buddy. If only it was that simple, eh…
