DreamWorks ranks among successful animation studios like Disney and Pixar due to its movies' fantastic animation and storytelling. This has resulted in several great films, such as the Shrek franchise, Prince of Egypt, The Road to El Dorado, Spirit Stallion of the Cimarron, and Megamind.

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However, even the best studios can make mistakes. Over the years, DreamWorks has made errors and some of them still haunt the animation studio. These mistakes can range from certain movies being made or the decisions on whether to capitalize on a certain property. DreamWorks may press on, but past errors remain.

10 Shrek The Third Was The Beginning Of The End For A Great Franchise

Donkey, Shrek, and Fiona in Shrek the third

Coming off the heels of the witty, energized, and heartfelt Shrek 2, Shrek the Third was an unfortunate step backward. So much of the magic from the first two Shrek films was all but gone. Shrek the Third sadly lacks much in the way of clever dialogue and fairytale parody, elements that encompassed the last two films.

The new characters leave something to be desired in comparison to the iconic characters of the other Shrek movies. The story doesn't feel as succinct when compared to other films in the franchise, and the jokes didn't land as successfully as they had before. Despite its best efforts, the Shrek franchise couldn't bounce back from its third installment.

9 Shark Tale Relied Too Much On Star Power

Jack Black, Will Smith, and Renee Zellweger's characters in Shark Tale

Shark Tale had a big-name cast including Will Smith, Angelina Jolie, Jack Black, Robert De Niro, and Renée Zellweger. These talented actors are capable of great work, which was proved when they successfully brought these enjoyable characters to life. However, these characters wouldn't be as popular or well-liked without the star power behind them.

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For example, Shark Tale's main character, Oscar (Will Smith), makes some selfish decisions throughout. When his friend, Angie, gives him a family heirloom to settle his debts, Oscar sells it to bet on a horse race. Along with the lie that kick-starts the plot, Oscar faces no real repercussions for anything and Angie's blind faith in him is somewhat frustrating.

8 Sinbad: Legend Of The Seven Seas Was A Financial Flop

Eris from Sinbad: Legend of the seven seas

Sinbad: Legend of the Seven Seas had a fun and swashbuckling story as well as likable characters who were backed by a strong voice cast. The film was all capped off with some stellar traditional and computer animation, particularly on the movie's main villain, Eris.

Despite being a moderately good movie, Sinbad: Legend of the Seven Seas was a financial flop and led to DreamWorks abandoning any use of traditional animation. This is largely disappointing since DreamWorks has proved that they can pull off beautiful hand-drawn animation.

7 The Cat In The Hat Killed Live-Action Dr. Seuss Adaptations

The Cat in the Hat Movie

The Cat in the Hat is one of Dr. Seuss' most iconic books. The Cat in the Hat has a simple but well-expressed message about the importance of rule-breaking: it's fine in small amounts, but people should be wary about taking it too far. The movie adaptation of The Cat in the Hat has little of what made this message or the characters so endearing and adds more to the story than what's necessary.

The film is also rampant with jokes that are too juvenile for adults and too vulgar for children. Capped off with dated pop culture references and music, these issues led to Dr. Seuss' wife forbidding any further live-action adaptations of her husband's work.

6 Shrek Forever After Didn't End The Franchise On A High Note

Shrek, Fiona, and his kids in Shrek Forever After

Shrek Forever After was the final big-screen installment of the Shrek franchise. Despite being better than Shrek the Third, Forever After did not end the franchise on a high note. After trying to recapture the magic and popularity of the original film, Shrek Forever After made it seem as if DreamWorks were running out of ideas.

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On top of that, Forever After portrays a world without Shrek and omits details that were established in the previous Shrek movies. For instance, Shrek never rescued Fiona in an alternate reality, but it's unknown what became of Lord Farquaad or Prince Charming's attempts. Despite Shrek 5 being speculated, there is no sign of it and Forever After remains the franchise's final legacy.

5 Flushed Away Dissolved A Good Partnership

Hugh Jackman as Roddy in Flushed Away

Flushed Away was the third and final project that DreamWorks and Aardman Animations collaborated on. Despite having a good critical reception, Flushed Away wasn't a financial success. This is because 2006, the year the film was released, was packed with several other successful animated films. Ultimately, this led DreamWorks to end the partnership with Aardman Animations.

Flushed Away had impeccable voice acting and solid animation. This particularly shines in the world of the sewers, where most of the film takes place. Had DreamWorks and Aardman Animations' partnership continued, they likely would have been able to expand on Flushed Away through sequels or reboots.

4 DreamWorks Could Have Revolutionized The Superhero Genre With Megamind

Roxanne and Megamind from Megamind.

Megamind was a parody of the superhero genre that had a surprisingly novel idea: the titular villain succeeds in killing the hero, Metro Man, but he is left disillusioned due to a lack of purpose. The characters and writing are genuinely funny, and Megamind's premise is a concept that even the best superhero movies don't often explore.

Sadly, Megamind proved to be one of DreamWorks' lowest-grossing movies. A year after its release, Jefferey Katzenberg claimed that the company would be avoiding satire similar to Megamind. This is a mistake because the movie is incredibly clever and enjoyable. Parody movies don't always succeed, so having a franchise that did would have been brilliant.

3 A Thousand Words Wasn't The Best Idea

Eddie Murphy in a Thousand Words

Whether it's his stand-up, his work on Saturday Night Live, or his movies, Eddie Murphy is incredibly funny. A Thousand Words made a questionable move by casting Eddie Murphy as a man whose speech is limited. Therefore, the film removed his greatest talent.

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A Thousand Words' comedy rides on the same jokes throughout, which can get tiring. The lesson that Murphy's character is supposed to learn from having limited words is unclear. Unfortunately, the consequences he goes through are then made all the more frustrating. Worsening the wound is that A Thousand Words earned a 0% rating on Rotten Tomatoes.

2 Spirit: Untamed Doesn't Come Close To The Beauty Of Its Predecessor

Image of the Spirit Untamed characters, which is the sequel to Spirit Stallion of the Cimmaron

Spirit: Stallion of the Cimarron is one of DreamWorks' most underrated films. Its soundtrack and score are beautiful, and its animation of the landscapes and the main character's expressions are stunning. This is especially true considering the horse does not talk, apart from Matt Damon's narration of the horse's thoughts. Stallion of the Cimarron boasts the heartfelt story of a horse and a boy going all out to win their freedom.

Spirit: Untamed, sadly lacks these qualities. Its CG animation doesn't capture the same beauty. Unfortunately, Untamed's story lacks the shine of its predecessor and is somewhat cliché. To top it off, the horse is not even the same character as the original.

1 Boss Baby Is An Overrated Franchise

Alec Baldwin as the titular Boss Baby

While Boss Baby is far from DreamWorks' worst movie, it is still well below their standards. It is abundant with lowbrow humor, its messages of family and friendship don't land, and its story and characters lack the heart and charm that DreamWorks' characters usually have.

Nevertheless, Boss Baby has been nominated for Best Animated Picture and also spawned a sequel and two Netflix TV spin-offs. The same problems of the first Boss Baby movie are rampant throughout all three subsequent installments. Moreover, Netflix has favored Boss Baby shows over several of its other animated projects.