Chris Farley as Shrek

Chris Farley Shrek

Up until a few weeks before his death, Chris Farley was recording the voice for the animated lead character in Shrek (2001). Although the Saturday Night Live alum had recorded the overwhelming majority of the movie before his untimely death at age 33 in 1997, it still was not finished so producers had to re-record the part with Mike Myers taking over the lead. If you have ever wondered what Farley might have sounded like as Shrek, now you can find out.

A newly released video features storyboard drawings with Farley voicing Shrek and Eddie Murphy as the voice of Donkey. Check it out.

After Farley’s death, the voicing of Shrek still took awhile. After Mike Myers was cast, he insisted on a rewrite of the script. Myers tried various accents throughout the process, and it was only after he had recorded the part that he asked to re-record it again with the now-familiar Scottish accent. While Shrek came out very well and Myers did a wonderful job, I still cannot help wondering what the movie might have been with Chris Farley.

What do you think of Chris Farley as Shrek? Leave your two cents in the comments.

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