DreamWorks recently made an exciting return to animation with the debut of their new logo, reminding the world of their past achievements in the genre, and the smash-hit movie Puss In Boots: The Last Wish. After a number of underwhelming years for the studio's animated projects, the fashionable feline returned to remind us all exactly why we fell in love with DreamWorks' animated movies in the first place.
The smash sequel recently clawed its way past $200 million at the global box office and has been well-reviewed by seemingly everyone, mostly because of how the film balances hysterical humor with some mature topics and themes. Serving as a perfect reminder of the quality of the movies that came before, and the hysterical characters introduced to us in them.
10 Toothless
It's perhaps a little surprising for a completely silent character to be considered funny, but thanks to incredibly emotive facial expressions, audiences are able to understand just about every thought that the Night Fury has. The How To Train Your Dragon franchise is perhaps the most mature of all the animated DreamWorks properties, but Toothless's constant silliness provides the movies with levity and truly hysterical moments.
Most of the humor in these movies comes from Toothless and his relationship with Hiccup (Jay Baruchel). The pair truly love one another, and, as is the case with all great friends, they like to prank and annoy one another, creating many memorable and hilarious moments.
9 Fiona
The fact that Princess Fiona (Cameron Diaz) is even able to make jokes at all (let alone ones that leave entire audiences' in stitches) is rather staggering considering she spent a good section of her life alone in a castle with only a fire breathing dragon for company. Thankfully, for us though, the experience didn't dampen the Princesses' spirits, meaning she's still able to put the eternally grumpy Shrek in his place.
As was the case with the entire Shrek franchise, Princess Fiona's hilarity began to waver with the third film in the franchise, at which point the magic of the series was undoubtedly lost and, though talk of a fifth entry remains, we prefer to just rewatch the first two movies in the franchise.
8 Roddy
Flushed Away is one of DreamWorks' less appreciated movies, but we feel it's more than worth a watch, particularly just to see what the world beneath your toilet actually looks like. The film follows Roddy (Hugh Jackman), an uptown rat who is flushed down the toilet into the sewers of London, where he must adapt to his new life.
Roddy operates as the perfect fish out of water (or rat out of water, should we say) for the first act of the movie, reacting with hysterical disgust to just about everyone and everything he encounters in the sewer. The sharp, witty dialogue of Flushed Away and the tiny details hidden in the sewer (these may require a second viewing) make this largely forgotten flick more than worth a watch, particularly to see Roddy's relentless disgust.
7 Megamind
It should come as no surprise that an animated character voiced by the legendary Will Ferrell is every bit as funny as the live-action characters he's appeared as. Megamind is a delight of a movie, poking fun at superhero tropes before the genre became the powerhouse of cinema that it is today, and Ferrell's blue villain steals just about every scene he's in.
Megamind is simply a villain of circumstance; mishearing his parent's final goodbye and being raised in prison ensures the character's villainous turn, but finally defeating his nemesis leaves him without purpose. Watching Megamind try to fill his time before eventually becoming a hero is sheer delight, and Ferrell's energetic performance ensures that the movie can be enjoyed by both children and adults.
6 Boss Baby
The simple image of a baby dressed in a suit, ready to dominate the business world, is enough to guarantee a place on this list. Beyond just his amusing appearance, however, the plot of the film lends itself to a number of comedic misunderstandings. Most effectively, whenever the baby's parents see him carrying out real business and assume he's just playing make-believe.
Once you become accustomed to hearing Alec Baldwin's voice coming from the baby (which admittedly can take a while), it adds to the ridiculousness of a baby with such intelligence. Seeing him square off against his big brother with his vastly superior intelligence is a lot of fun, and watching the baby try to convince his friends that puppies are evil is truly hilarious.
5 Wallace
He may be the voice of the operation, but if one thing is made clear in the hit claymation movie Wallace And Gromit: The Curse of the Were-Rabbit, it's that his silent companion Gromit is certainly the brains of their pest control operation. Wallace (Peter Sallis) spends most of the movie too distracted by cheese to notice the concern of his four-legged friend.
There are many reasons why Wallace deserves to be on this list. His many zany inventions and the fact that the mere presence of the woman of his dreams turns him into a blubbering fool are chief among them, though. The fact that Wallace often doesn't realize when he's being funny only makes him funnier, although we definitely wouldn't hire him for pest control.
4 Puss in Boots
Puss in Boots (Antonio Banderas) has been on quite the cinematic journey since he was first hired to assassinate Shrek all the way back in the beloved sequel Shrek 2. The boot-wearing cat quickly became a fan favorite character, appearing both subsequent Shrek sequels before going on to lead his very own franchise.
Perhaps the funniest thing about Puss is the juxtaposition between his fierce skills with a sword and his ability to stop people in their tracks with nothing but his incredible cuteness. His constant bickering with Donkey and their fight to be considered Shrek's best animal friend were a constant fixture of the Shrek franchise and never failed to make audiences laugh.
3 Shrek
Shrek's (Mike Myers) short temper and unrelenting grumpiness endeared audiences to such an extent that even now, he remains a titan of pop culture. The green ogre is an incredibly rare achievement in animation, a character who people of all ages find hysterical. Whether that's because of his unapologetic burping or his discomfort around his in-laws, there is just no situation that the iconic character can't make hilarious.
Shrek's rare moments of warmth and tenderness are equally important, too, redeeming the character's often unacceptable behavior by highlighting that he really is trying to be the best version of himself he can be. Just don't ask him to do the roar; he doesn't like that at all.
2 Po
Let's be honest; the idea of a rather round Panda becoming a kung-fu master is hilarious even before Jack Black was cast as the titular hero. The manner in which Po stumbles through the movie, prioritizing food over kung fu and managing to annoy just about every member of the Furious Five.
Across the Kung Fu Panda franchise, Po eventually does fulfill his kung fu potential, proving to everyone that he truly is the Dragon Warrior. Unfortunately, Po's intellect never quite rises to match his fighting ability, resulting in dozens of comedic misunderstandings and mistakes, each of which seems to be funnier than the last. We're sure Po will be just as funny when he returns in the upcoming Kung Fu Panda 4.
1 Donkey
Donkey may not just be the funniest DreamWorks animated character; there's an argument to be made that the motor-mouthed sidekick is actually one of the funniest animated characters ever brought to life. Eddie Murphy's frantic and passionate performance as the annoying ally ensures that every joke that leaves Donkey's mouth lands perfectly, especially when he's annoying his best friend, Shrek.
Between interrupting romantic moments, singing on a regular basis, and falling into just about every trap he comes across, Donkey can't go five minutes without getting himself into some kind of hilarious mixup. Thankfully, he's often able to smooth talk his way out of such situations by complimenting a nearby boulder or blaming it all on Puss in Boots. Never before has a donkey been more deserving of some tasty waffles.