While they might have fallen out of fashion a bit these days, there's no escaping the box-office juggernaut that was (once) the Shrek movies.
Starring the likes of Mike Myers, Cameron Diaz and Eddie Murphy, DreamWorks' four Shrek movies even gave Pixar a run for its money. There was something about reimagining Grimms' Fairy Tales with a comedic twist that just worked.
![Shrek 1-4 Box Set [DVD]](https://hips.hearstapps.com/vader-prod.s3.amazonaws.com/1587551577-51Qu0yQ7SeL.jpg?crop=1xw:1xh;center,top&resize=980:* "Shrek 1-4 Box Set [DVD]")
Aside from the occasional adult joke and reminder to wipe your... face, the animated franchise is a family-friendly affair everyone can enjoy.
That isn't to say there hasn't been the odd dark Easter egg slipped into the background – it's no secret that the skinned carcass of Mama Bear can be found as a rug in Lord Farquaad's room. (Then there's his name.)
However, there's a dark new theory that makes Mummy Bear's death look like a trip to Disneyland.
Heading back to 2001's original movie, John Lithgow's pint-sized Lord Farquaad lorded it over the Disney-inspired Duloc. The movie ended with Farquaad defeated, Princess Fiona's curse being broken and everyone getting on with their lives, with Shrek back in his swamp.
The action of the sequels largely moved to Fiona's homeland of Far Far Away, but what happened to Duloc? According to Reddit user premeddit, it was anything but a happy ending.
The theory points fans to 2010's Halloween short Scared Shrekless, currently available to watch on Netflix.
The 26-minute special homaged horror classics like Psycho and The Exorcist, but if you look a little closer, it seemed to reveal what happened to Duloc after the first movie.
In Scared Shrekless, Duloc appeared as a ravaged ghost town that was devoid of life. The theory suggests that for Duloc to have been emptied so quickly, it's likely due to a natural disaster or invading army.
It's important to note that the Duloc of Scared Shrekless was a wasteland of upturned carriages and broken glass, which also appeared to be covered in scorch marks.
Dragon already toppled Duloc's defences and gatecrashed Farquaad's wedding to Fiona, meaning it would be easy for her to raid the capital again – especially if Farquaad and his forces had been bested.
Does the Shrek series really take a leaf out of Game of Thrones' book and have Duloc ransacked like the tragic destruction of King's Landing? And does this make Princess Fiona some sort of Mad Queen Daenerys Targaryen?
There's some well-rounded points and the sprawling thread even takes into account the ending of Shrek.
For anyone who might've questioned why Duloc's executioner was seen happily dancing at Shrek and Fiona's wedding, the theory also gives him a crucial role in the sacking of Duloc.
Discussing the executioner, the theory continues: "He had the foresight to see which way the winds were blowing, and made a deal to open the main gates after Farquaad was taken out. For this he was spared."
Things then go off the boil a bit with horror stories about the Gingerbread Man chopping the legs off Duloc citizens as twisted revenge for what happened to him.
However, imaginative thoughts of "an orgy of rioting and slaughter by the fairy tale creatures" and "civilians ripped apart by magical spells, teeth and claws" could be on the money with this one.
If nothing else, Duloc's demise is an interesting piece of fan-fiction and would also explain why Shrek and his fairytale friends were so ready for battle in Shrek 2. (But it could also be that Duloc is darker because it's a Halloween special.)
Although it's a pretty grim prognosis for the usually candy-coated world of Shrek, let's remember this is the series that had Mummy Bear flayed and Gingey's limbs devoured before our eyes.
There's some evidence against the theory (albeit not much) that reminds fans Scared Shrekless is supposed to be a meta take on horror movies and might not be a factual account.
The Duloc wasteland viewers see in the Halloween short could just be the overactive imagination of a certain wooden boy who is known for telling lies.
Who knows, maybe the long-awaited Shrek 5 will finally clear up what happened to the doomed Duloc? If it ever happens, that is.
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Tom Chapman is a pop culture-loving writer and NCTJ-accredited Broadcast Journalist with over seven years of experience covering the small and silver screen.
Starting his career with a post at Movie Pilot in Berlin, Tom took on freelancing full-time with regular stints at Digital Spy, Screen Rant and Comic Book Resources.
These days, you can still find him covering all things Marvel and Star Wars at Digital Spy, while dipping his toe in bylines at Yahoo! and IGN.
Tom likes to think his spirit animal is a cross between Gale Weathers and Olenna Tyrell.
