Following its premiere in 2001, Shrek took the world by storm and became the face of DreamWorks Animation, and is arguably the film that made the studio the arch-rival to Disney. Shrek makes even more sense in that regard as the film itself was an on-the-nose satire of Disney and their works, putting a clever spin on the fairytale genre and introducing characters who would go on to become instant household names. With a saga of four successful films, a spin-off of some sort following at least one of the side characters was obviously a given, and the character they went with was none other than the orange feline with a love of fancy footwear.

Introduced in Shrek 2 (2004), Puss in Boots, played by Antonio Banderas (Desperado), became one of the most recognized characters in the whole series. Very clearly taking inspiration from Banderas' time as Zorro in The Mask of Zorro (1998), Puss met Shrek (Mike Myers) and his friend Donkey (Eddie Murphy) first as an assassin sent to dispatch them, but quickly became friends with the duo, appearing in every subsequent Shrek film since. The character became so popular that he was chosen to lead DreamWorks Animation's first-ever spin-off film, Puss in Boots (2011), which detailed the origins of the feline hero years before he met Shrek and the gang.

Now, over 11 years later since his last feature film, Puss in Boots is back for a new adventure with Puss in Boots: The Last Wish (2022). The new film sees the Puss as confident as ever, battling giants and being an all-around hero. However, perhaps the charismatic cat has been a bit too reckless, as he's down to the last of his nine lives. This leads him to enter a life of retirement, but he's quickly thrust back into action when a group of bounty hunters comes to collect the lucrative cash prize on Puss. The new adventure mostly seems to feature new characters in Shrek's fairy tale universe, but there's also a familiar face returning as well. To find out who these new and returning characters are, read below for a comprehensive guide to the film's inhabitants of Far, Far, Away and beyond.

Related:‘Puss In Boots: The Last Wish’: New Enemies, Trailer, Release Date, and Everything We Know So Far

Antonio Banderas as Puss in Boots

Antonio Banderas side by side with the titular character in Puss in Boots: The Last Wish
Images via Sony Pictures Classics; DreamWorks Animation

First up is the titular character of Puss in Boots, played once again by Antonio Banderas.

Puss' origins were detailed in his standalone film, where he was an orphaned kitten who found a home in the orphanage of San Ricardo. There he met Humpty Dumpty (Zach Galifianakis), who became his closest friend. However, that friendship was destroyed when Humpty manipulated Puss into performing a botched bank heist, where the hero became a wanted outlaw in the town and was forced to flee. Years later, Puss traveled to the land of Far, Far, Away, where he took up mercenary work for those who needed shady dealing taken care of.

One day, the King of Far, Far, Away (John Cleese), paid Puss to deal with his controversial son-in-law, Shrek. He takes the contract but quickly discovers that Shrek and his companion Donkey aren't worth killing, and he becomes a lifelong companion of the duo, turning it into a trio. Puss aided Shrek in a number of adventures, including battling the evil Fairy Godmother (Jennifer Saunders), finding the future king of the realm with young Arthur (Justin Timberlake), and even helping reverse a corrupted timeline from the vile Rumpelstiltskin (Walt Dohrn). For reasons that aren't exactly known, Puss left Far, Far, Away and eventually found his way back home.

Puss sought to clear his name and prove his innocence, leading him to reunite with Humpty Dumpty and met master thief Kitty Softpaws (Salma Hayek). The new trio plot a heist of the Jack and the Beanstalk giant's abandoned castle and steals the Golden Goose, allowing them endless riches for the rest of their lives. The plan was a success, but Humpty still hadn't forgiven Puss for betraying him and got his friend thrown in prison. After the Golden Goose's giant mother came to destroy the town, Puss saved the day and proved he was a hero once and for all, with the help of his new romantic frenemy Kitty.

Since Kitty is returning for The Last Wish, the new film will take place after the first Puss in Boots film and the previous Shrek films, making this the most recent in the franchise timeline. Here, Puss will be dealing with a midlife crisis of sorts, choosing to risk eternal death by living his reckless lifestyle or living out his remaining days as an elderly house cat.

Salma Hayek as Kitty Softpaws

Salma Hayek side by side with Kitty Softpaws in Puss in Boots: The Last Wish
Images via Marvel Studios; DreamWorks Animation

The only returning character besides Puss (that we know of anyway) is none other than Kitty Softpaws, reuniting Banderas and his Desperado (1995) co-star Salma Hayek yet again.

Kitty is brought in by Humpty due to her unparalleled skill as a master thief, part of which is because of her namesake soft paws. Puss also discovers that Kitty is also very much his equal in combat and manipulation, easily wiping the floor with him in their first meeting. Still, Puss and Kitty quickly form a bond and begin to care for each other, despite Kitty full-well knowing that Humpty's plan ends in Puss getting betrayed. In the end, though, Kitty does the right thing and helps Puss save the town.

In the trailer for The Last Wish, Kitty seems to be up to her old tricks, before reluctantly agreeing to help Puss on his latest quest.

Harvey Guillén as Perro

Harvey Guillen side by side with Perro in Puss in Boots: The Last Wish
Images via FX; DreamWorks Animation

The first of many new characters, Harvey Guillén (What We Do in the Shadows) lends his voice to Perro, a new companion for Puss and Kitty.

Puss seems to meet Perro at Mama Luna's Cat Rescue, where he goes to retire after getting the news that he's on his last life. For whatever reason, Perro has put on a crude disguise of a cat when he meets Puss. The optimistic puppy in disguise tells Puss that he's a therapy dog, even offering the depressed hero to pet his less-than-cute belly. Though Puss seems to be annoyed by his new companion, an overly happy face could be just what Puss needs to get out of this existential slump that he finds himself in.

Florence Pugh as Goldilocks

Florence Pugh side by side with Goldilocks in Puss in Boots: The Last Wish
Images via A24; DreamWorks Animation

Florence Pugh (Black Widow) will be voicing the iconic Goldilocks, but in typical Shrek fashion, this is not the same little girl from the beloved story.

This Goldilocks is the leader of the Goldilocks and the Three Bears Crime Family, which predictably consists of Goldilocks herself, Papa Bear (Ray Winstone), Mama Bear (Olivia Colman), and Baby Bear (Samson Kayo). Though in the story the Three Bears weren't fond of finding a blonde child usurping their home, they seem to have put aside their past differences to track down Puss, possibly to collect that bounty we mentioned earlier.

Ray Winstone, Olivia Colman, and Samson Kayo as Papa Bear, Mama Bear, and Baby Bear

Samson Kayo, Ray Winstone, and Olivia Colman side by side with the three bears in Puss in Boots: The Last Wish
Images via Prime Video; Marvel Studios; Netflix; DreamWorks Animation

The Three Bears of Goldilocks' universally known story are being voiced by some pretty big names, including BAFTA Film Nominee Ray Winstone (The Departed), BAFTA Television Nominee Samson Kayo (Our Flag Means Death), and Academy Award Winner Olivia Colman (The Favourite).

Where Goldilocks seems to be the leader and brains behind the crime family, the bears mostly seem like the muscle of the group, though Papa Bear does offer a softer approach when interrogating Mama Luna (Da'Vine Joy Randolph). With their great size and ferocity, they'll be a great physical threat to Puss and his friends. However, the Goldilocks and the Three Bears Crime Family aren't the only villains hunting Puss down.

Wagner Moura as The Big Bad Wolf

Wagner Moura side by side with the Wolf in Puss in Boots: The Last Wish
Images via Apple TV+; DreamWorks Animation

Though it's hard to imagine he'll be playing a character as evil as Pablo Escobar, Wagner Moura (Narcos) will be voicing the Big Bad Wolf (not to be confused with the humorous Big Bad Wolf from the prior Shrek films).

This anthropomorphic wolf is a horrifying bounty hunter, armed with dual sickles and piercing red eyes. Certainly, he's the scariest looking villain we've seen from the film's marketing material yet, even having his menacing silhouette hidden in the background of the poster. Given how he's portrayed in the trailers, the Wolf might really be the "Big Bad" antagonist of the film, with an epic duel being teased between Puss and the Wolf at the end of the second trailer.

John Mulaney as Big Jack Horner

John Mulaney side by side with Big Jack Horner in Puss in Boots: The Last Wish
Images via NBC; DreamWorks Animation

Stand-up comedian John Mulaney (Chip 'n Dale: Rescue Rangers) will be playing the character we know the least about so far, that being Jack Horner.

"Little Jack Horner" is a lesser-known nursery rhyme where the young child gleefully ate a plum pie. Not really deep source material nor is it really a fairy tale, but his casting description implies that this Jack Horner is all-grown-up. Perhaps Jack is that mystery combatant we see in that duel at the end of the trailer, wielding a crossbow and ready for battle.

Related:‘Puss in Boots: The Last Wish’ Director: "Fear of Death" Drives The Sequel

Da'Vine Joy Randolph as Mama Luna

Da'Vine Joy Randolph side by side with Mama Luna in Puss in Boots: The Last Wish
Images via Paramount Pictures; DreamWorks Animation

Da'Vine Joy Randolph played the famously curmudgeonly cop in Only Murders in the Building (2021-2022), and now she'll be voicing the kind-hearted Mama Luna.

Luna looks like the definition of your generic crazy cat lady, fostering several dozen kittens in her home making it borderline infested with cats. They don't seem like magical fairy tale cats either, as she discourages any form of non-cat behavior. One of the cats she's fostering is even the famous "Ohhh" cat from the original Puss in Boots, providing a fun callback to the first film.