Top 10 Darkest Moments in DreamWorks Movies
#10: Alex Is Taken from His Family
“Madagascar: Escape 2 Africa” (2008) No one should be ripped from their family, human or animal. Unfortunately for Alex from the “Madagascar” franchise, this happened to him when he was a young cub. A run-in with poachers separated him from his parents and led to him growing up at the Central Park Zoo. While their reunion is a heartwarming moment in “Escape 2 Africa,” it was still a little bittersweet. After all, Alex wasn’t the young child his parents last remembered — he was all grown up. A crucial amount of time that they should’ve been able to spend together was now lost.
#9: Farquaad Tortures the Gingerbread Man
“Shrek” (2001) When Lord Farquaad wants answers, he gets them. In “Shrek,” the villainous leader puts the Gingerbread Man through the wringer in an attempt to find the other fairy tale creatures. He even has Gingy’s legs broken off and threatens to tear off his gumdrop buttons. We can’t lie — DreamWorks managed to take a scene involving torture and make it surprisingly hilarious. But don’t let that distract you from the fact that this is still a pretty morbid situation. Even if it’s funny for us, it definitely isn’t funny for poor Gingy. Thankfully, Farquaad gets his comeuppance when he’s eaten by the Dragon at the end.
#8: Frankie Is Crushed by an Anchor
“Shark Tale” (2004) They say the sea is unforgiving, and that’s definitely true in “Shark Tale.” Early in the film, Frankie — the son of a notorious mob shark — is unexpectedly killed. The fatal blow is revealed to be caused by an anchor that strikes him square on the head. It’s a pivotal moment that shapes the entire direction of the plot — and also reminds us that anchors are scary. Frankie might’ve been a cold-blooded creature, but seeing him die in such dramatic fashion was a real shock. The movie plays up the shock of the moment with the reaction from Frankie’s brother, Lenny.
#7: Shrek Loses His Family
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“Shrek Forever After” (2010) When Shrek is introduced to an alternate reality where he was never born, things get topsy-turvy. It’s not just that Shrek is no longer around. The ogre soon realizes that if he was never born, then he’d never fall in love with Fiona, and as a result, their children would never be born either. It’s a haunting thought that Shrek struggles to grapple with. And when he finds an old toy that would’ve belonged to his kids in the regular timeline, he cries. While Shrek was able to fix things and get his happily ever after back, this nightmare reality proved to be a gut punch.
#6: Puss Has a Panic Attack
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“Puss in Boots: The Last Wish” (2022) Part of what makes this spinoff sequel film so great is the way it expertly weaves in serious issues to add an extra layer of depth to our favorite feline. When Death starts to hunt Puss, his facade as a fearless swashbuckler starts crumbling. And in one scene, Puss suffers a full-blown panic attack. He starts hyperventilating and his heart thumps loudly inside his chest. It’s a powerful portrayal of a very real situation many people experience. Thankfully his dog companion, Perrito, is able to provide calming support in his friend’s moment of need.
#5: Colonel’s Treatment of Spirit
“Spirit: Stallion of the Cimarron” (2002) If we had to pick just one thing this movie absolutely succeeds at, it would be making us hate the Colonel’s guts. “Spirit” didn’t shy away from showing several harsh sequences of the titular horse suffering abuse. When several wranglers fail to domesticate him, the Colonel decides to step in. He keeps Spirit tied to a post for several days with nothing around to eat or drink. The scenes can be a really tough watch at times. The Colonel even tries to kill Spirit before the horse is able to break free and escape.
#4: Mrs. Tweedy’s Chicken Farm Cruelty
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“Chicken Run” (2000) You might have to be a bit ruthless to run a successful business, but nobody should be this ruthless. Mrs. Tweedy is one seriously angry farm owner and that shows with her harsh treatment of her chickens. She even kills a chicken named Edwina because she could no longer lay eggs. This might be a farm, but it’s more or less portrayed like a prison camp for the chickens. Their situation doesn’t get any better when Mrs. Tweedy gets the idea to bake them into chicken pies and sell them. The prospect of being murdered by a giant machine is a frightening one, so it’s no surprise that these chickens are desperate to fly the coop.
#3: Hiccup Loses His Dad
“How to Train Your Dragon 2” (2014) The Hooligan tribe endured a lot throughout the “How to Train Your Dragon” franchise. When Drago Bludvist enters the fray in the second film, Stoick the Vast prepares for war. He knows how dangerous Drago can be. In the past, Drago had dragons kill Stoick’s fellow chieftains, an encounter which Stoick barely survived. When Hiccup’s life is threatened by a mind-controlled Toothless, Stoick sacrifices himself to save his son. His death and funeral scenes leave the characters in a dark place. If Hiccup losing his leg in the first movie wasn’t enough, his dad’s death in this sequel continued the trend of difficult themes in the franchise.
#2: Destruction of the Panda Village
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“Kung Fu Panda 2” (2011) When you get told some bad news, you might feel like lashing out. But when Lord Shen hears of a prophecy that warns of his demise, he does more than lash out. Interpreting the phrase “a warrior of black and white” to mean he’d die at the hands of a panda, Shen orchestrates an attack on a village of them. While some of them survived, including young Po, many were killed — notably Po’s mother. Seeing her desperately stash baby Po away to sacrifice herself was enough to bring tears to our eyes.
#1: Pharaoh Seti’s Treatment of Babies
“The Prince of Egypt” (1998) This movie musical certainly packs a dramatic punch. It tells the biblical story of Moses from the Book of Exodus, which has no shortage of intense moments. Right in the opening sequence, Hebrew babies are permanently ripped from their families. Moses may have sufferred the same fate had he not been sent down the river in a basket by his mother. While that tragedy was averted, it's still not smooth sailing. When Moses grows up, he learns that his adoptive father, Pharaoh Seti, was the one who orchestrated the fates of those children. As far as messed up moments go, learning that ugly truth about your father figure is definitely up there.
