The Cast of Shrek – Kātahi Te Korokē Announced Ahead of World Premiere
Māoriland Productions, in collaboration with DreamWorks Animation, is proud to announce the cast for the eagerly anticipated Māori reversioning of the beloved animated film Shrek.
Māoriland held a nationwide audition process in September 2023 to find the voices for Shrek – Kātahi Te Korokē with Māoriland receiving strong interest from across Aotearoa.
Producer Libby Hakaraia, Head of Content at Māoriland said “Many of those that auditioned grew up with Shrek. More than a few claimed it as their all-time favourite film, therefore they put their best into their audition pieces”.
Leading the notable cast is renowned actor and musician Maaka Pohatu, who takes on the role of the loveable green ogre, Shrek. The exceptional actor and singer Tuakoi Ohia is the voice of Princess Fiona.
Shrek’s loyal sidekick Donkey is one of the hosts of the popular reo Māori podcast Taringa, Te Puaheiri Snowden. Respected Māori language advocate Jeremy Tātere McLeod delivers a dynamic performance as the preposterous Lord Farquaad.
Director Tainui Stephens appreciated the honour of helping a new audience to see a beloved film in a new Indigenous light.
“To dub Shrek into the Māori language and reflect our worldview was a joyful challenge. The film is so funny and so meaningful. So too is our reo and our culture. Finding the right words and people to say them required intense collaboration. Our tikanga guided us to do just that.”
Producer Libby Hakaraia said “All the Māori cast had fond memories of the original 2001 film. They also understood the need to bring a new dimension to characters and a story that has successfully stood the test of time”.
Maaka Pohatu jumped at the opportunity to voice Shrek and during his preparation decided to honour the original performance by Mike Myers.
“I rewatched the movie three or four times. I just sat there going through the vowel sounds and played around with some variations of playing te reo Māori with a Scottish accent. I think the line ‘That’ll do Donkey, that’ll do!’ in te reo just kills me. ‘Kia tau Tonki, kia tau!’ It’s my favourite line, hands down.” said Maaka Pohatu
Tuakoi Ohia drew on her extensive experience as a performer on stage, screen and in kapa haka to bring colour to the film’s crazy action and touching romance as Puhi Whiona.
“My favourite part about playing Princess Fiona is that she has a lot of dynamics in her voice. So it’s nice to play high and low and dramatic and calm. She’s a really fun character to play.”
For many, Donkey is the comedic heart of the film. Te Puaheiri Snowden had to emulate Eddie Murphy’s stellar performance as an irrepressible motormouth.
“Taku kāpeka pai katoa o te kiriata nei, me ngā wāhanga pai katoa ki a au ko te wā ka horo te kōrero a Tonki. Me te piki me te heke o tana reo, e hāngai ana ki ngā kare o roto, te ariā rānei o te kiripuaki. Koina ko te painga: he wero, he mahi rawerawe, he mahi ngahau hoki ki a au — The best scenes of the film for me, were those times when Donkey had to speak really fast. His voice also needed to go high or low, depending on the emotions or feelings of the character. Although it was a great challenge for me, it was really enjoyable and fun work.”
Jeremy Tātere MacLeod is well known in the Māori world for his enthusiastic practice of the Māori language. He relished the chance to inhabit a character different to his own.
“Lord Farquaad (Rore Whakia) is pompous with delusions of grandeur. He’s insecure and very ridiculous. Being pompous comes very unnaturally for me, I promise!”
A sister and brother were also cast in the film. Tuakoi Ohia as Fiona and her brother Tahuaroa as Gingy.
Producer Libby Hakaraia said this shows the depth of love Māori whānau have for Shrek.
“Tahuaroa works at Māoriland and he and his sister Tuakoi both know the entire film by heart. Tahu auditioned for Gingy and DreamWorks signed off on him straight away.”
Shrek – Kātahi Te Korokē is the first DreamWorks Animation film to be adapted into te reo Māori. It builds upon the success of previous Māori language film adaptations like Moana, The Lion King, and Encanto, that showcase the transformative power of language and cultural storytelling.
A skilled team of translators and humorists led by Te Moananui ā Kiwa Goddard and Hēni Jacob took on the task of translating the original dialogue. They needed to find a level of language that served the story, yet also gave a unique Māori flavour to the humour that is such a strong feature of the film.
Shrek – Kātahi Te Korokē is supported by Te Māngai Pāho and Te Tumu Whakaata Taonga (NZFC) and celebrates the versatility of te reo Māori by normalising its use in popular mainstream entertainment.
The world premiere of Shrek – Kātahi Te Korokē will take place on March 27, 2025, at the Māoriland Film Festival in Ōtaki. Tickets go on sale Feb 12, 2025.
Following the premiere, Shrek – Kātahi Te Korokē will tour New Zealand with special screenings, bringing the magic of this iconic story to audiences and whānau nationwide. TVNZ will then platform the Māori version of the film later in 2025.
Māoriland Film Festival is Aotearoa’s international Indigenous Film Festival. MFF2025 will be held from 26 – 30 March in the vibrant community of Ōtaki. In its 12th year, the full festival program will be announced on February 12, 2025 including five days of screenings, interactive installation and art exhibitions, industry events and more.
For media inquiries, please contact:
Adam Warin: [email protected]