Puss in Boots: The Last Wish

The sequel to the spin-off film Puss in Boots (2011) and the sixth installment and soft reboot of the Shrek film series, the film was directed by Joel Crawford, co-directed by Januel Mercado (in his feature directorial debut), and written by Paul Fisher, Tommy Swerdlow, and Tom Wheeler.

Based on the character introduced in Shrek 2 (2004) and inspired by the fairy tale of the same name, the voice cast includes Antonio Banderas and Salma Hayek reprising their respective roles as the titular character and Kitty Softpaws, with new additions to the cast including Harvey Guillén, Florence Pugh, Olivia Colman, Ray Winstone, Samson Kayo, John Mulaney, Wagner Moura, Kevin McCann, Da’Vine Joy Randolph, and Anthony Mendez.

Set after the events of Shrek Forever After (2010), the story follows Puss in Boots, who teams up with Kitty and Perrito to find the Last Wish of the fallen Wishing Star to restore eight of his nine lives.

They race against other fairy tale characters seeking the same treasure, while a sinister wolf hunts Puss himself.

Plans for a sequel to Puss in Boots began in November 2012 but languished in development hell until it was revived in November 2018, with Illumination founder and CEO Chris Meledandri confirmed as an executive producer.

It was announced in February 2019 that the film would be helmed by Bob Persichetti, head of story of the first film and co-director of Sony Pictures Animation’s Spider-Man: Into the Spider-Verse (2018).

However, Crawford signed on and replaced Persichetti as director in March 2021, along with Mercado. The story draws inspiration from Spaghetti Western films, with The Good, the Bad and the Ugly (1966) cited as a particular influence.

The film’s style is inspired by Spider-Man: Into the Spider-Verse.

With new technology, the team was able to give the film a painterly style to resemble a fairy-tale story, diverging from the visual style of previous installments in the Shrek franchise.

Following delays due to a restructuring at DreamWorks, Puss in Boots: The Last Wish premiered at Lincoln Center in New York City on December 13, 2022, and was theatrically released in the United States on December 21.

Since its release, Puss in Boots: The Last Wish has been hailed as a modern classic, acquiring acclaim from critics and audiences.

It was also a box office success, grossing over $485 million worldwide on a production budget of $90–110 million and becoming the tenth-highest-grossing film of 2022.

At the 95th Academy Awards it was nominated for Best Animated Feature, as well as receiving nominations at the Golden Globes, Critics’ Choice Awards, and British Academy Film Awards.

After Puss recovers, the town doctor advises Puss to retire because he has already lost eight of his nine lives.

Puss initially refuses, but relents when he is wounded and disarmed while dueling a wolf, who he assumes is a bounty hunter, at the local pub.

Traumatized by the event, Puss follows the doctor’s directions to the house of Mama Luna, an elderly cat lady, and buries his clothes. Months later, Puss meets an optimistic Chihuahua disguised as a cat, whom he calls Perrito.

Goldilocks and the Three Bears Crime Family soon arrive at Luna’s home, looking to hire Puss to help them steal a map displaying the Wishing Star’s location. They leave after finding his apparent grave.

Puss decides to find the Star and wish to have nine lives again. Perrito follows Puss to the factory lair of corrupt pastry salesman and magical artifact collector “Big” Jack Horner, who intends to use the Star to control all of the world’s magic.

While stealing the map from Horner, Puss encounters his resentful ex-fiancée Kitty Softpaws, who intends to take the map for herself. Goldi, the Bears, and Horner discover and chase the trio, during which Puss spots the wolf.

They all end up in the Dark Forest, a pocket dimension that manifests illusions of travelers’ memories. During the subsequent clash, Puss suffers a panic attack and flees after the wolf reappears, allowing Goldi to take the map from Kitty.

After Perrito finds Puss and calms him down, Puss confesses his fears and remorse for abandoning Kitty before their wedding.

Kitty overhears Puss and tells him that she did not attend the wedding either, believing he loved himself too much to love her.

Reinvigorated, Puss and Kitty retrieve the map while Goldi and the Bears are distracted by a manifestation of their woodland cottage. As revenge, Goldi kidnaps Perrito, but Kitty rescues him.

Meanwhile, Puss becomes trapped in the crystalline “Cave of Souls”, where he sees reflections of his arrogant past lives, who ridicule him for changing his outlook. The wolf arrives and reveals himself as Death.

Outraged by Puss’ failure to value any of his lives, Death intends to take Puss’ final life personally. Horrified, Puss runs out of the cave towards the Star, leaving Kitty and Perrito behind.

During an argument with the Bears, Goldi reveals she intends to wish for a “proper”, human family. The Bears become disheartened but nonetheless agree to help her.

Reaching the star, Puss begins to make his wish until Kitty arrives, berates him for his selfishness, and reveals her wish to find someone she could trust. Goldi, the Bears, and Horner arrive, and a fight ensues for the map.

Goldi briefly obtains it, but abandons it to save Baby Bear. Kitty traps Horner inside his magical bottomless bag. Death arrives and challenges Puss to a duel.

Having learned the value of life from his time with his companions, Puss forgoes wishing for more lives and accepts, temporarily disarming Death.

Puss declares that he knows he can never truly defeat Death, but he will never stop fighting for his last life.

Realizing Puss is no longer arrogant, Death begrudgingly spares him and leaves, though he and Puss acknowledge that they will eventually meet again. Horner escapes the bag by eating a magic snack, which transforms him into a giant.

Perrito distracts Horner, allowing Puss, Kitty, and Goldi to destroy the map, causing the Star to collapse and consume Horner before launching into the sky and exploding. Goldi affirms to the Bears that they are her true family.

Goldi and the Bears decide to take over Horner’s business. Puss rekindles his romance with Kitty. The two cats and Perrito steal a ship and set sail for the Kingdom of Far Far Away to visit “some old friends”.