ArkaEvren
Puss in Boots

FILM · 2011 · USA

Puss in Boots

27 archived facts 5 topics 1 source Last reviewed Oct 2026

  • Puss in Boots — production image

27 Interesting Facts About Puss in Boots

Interesting Facts (21)

  1. #001

    A deliberate decision was made to make the world of Puss in Boots very different from the one depicted in the Shrek films. In the latter, the backgrounds and stylizations are very fairy-tale-like. Here there is a distinctly Spanish atmosphere with warmer, more orange colors.

    INTERESTING FACTS · SOURCED

    ShareReport
  2. #002

    (At about 3 minutes) The opening bar scene closely resembles the bar scene in Desperado (1995), another film starring both Antonio Banderas (Puss) and Salma Hayek (Kitty).

    INTERESTING FACTS · SOURCED

    ShareReport
  3. #003

    Antonio Banderas took part in the film's viral marketing campaign by posing for photos surrounded by cats at a screening.

    INTERESTING FACTS · SOURCED

    ShareReport
  4. #004

    One of the orphans at the San Ricardo Orphanage is Mary, along with her little lamb.

    INTERESTING FACTS · SOURCED

    ShareReport
  5. #005

    (At about the 49th minute) When Humpty Dumpty finds the Golden Goose's "nest," he says he feels like he belongs there, and later says he never felt he belonged in San Ricardo. He turns into an animated golden egg.

    INTERESTING FACTS · SOURCED

    ShareReport
  6. #006

    Because DreamWorks was making three films in one year, part of this film had to be outsourced to India.

    INTERESTING FACTS · SOURCED

    ShareReport
  7. #007

    The Cat Cantina sequence features thirty different breeds of cats.

    INTERESTING FACTS · SOURCED

    ShareReport
  8. #008

    The film is a prequel and spin-off of the Shrek series, set years before Puss in Boots meets Shrek and Donkey.

    INTERESTING FACTS · SOURCED

    ShareReport
  9. #009

    Puss in Boots's adorable "doe-eyes" scenes are a tribute to the famous Pity Kitty series by Gig, a popular children's illustrator of the 1960s and 1970s.

    INTERESTING FACTS · SOURCED

    ShareReport
  10. #010

    This film was initially planned to be direct-to-DVD, but it was moved to a theatrical release because it would have been strange for DreamWorks Animation not to release all of its films consistently in theaters.

    INTERESTING FACTS · SOURCED

    ShareReport
  11. #011

    Because the Cat does not stand next to the 2-meter-tall Shrek, he is actually somewhat shorter in this film.

    INTERESTING FACTS · SOURCED

    ShareReport
  12. #012

    Puss in Boots is the first and only character from the Shrek film series to have a film of his own.

    INTERESTING FACTS · SOURCED

    ShareReport
  13. #013

    At around the 8-minute mark, the Cat's phrase "Holy Frijoles" is an English/Spanish mix, with "frijoles" meaning beans in Spanish. The expression was used many times by Speedy Gonzales, a Mexican mouse, in Warner Bros. cartoons.

    INTERESTING FACTS · SOURCED

    ShareReport
  14. #014

    Director Chris Miller was a story artist on Shrek (2001) and Shrek Forever After (2010), head of story on Shrek 2 (2004), and directed Shrek the Third (2007).

    INTERESTING FACTS · SOURCED

    ShareReport
  15. #015

    After Shark Tale (2004), in which she appeared alongside Lola, this was the second DreamWorks Animation film featuring a Hidden Secondary Antagonist — the character (Humpty Dumpty) who sides with the villains and ultimately turns to the good side. Other Hidden Secondary Antagonists in DreamWorks Animation films either suffered the same defeat as the Main Antagonist or their fate is unknown.

    INTERESTING FACTS · SOURCED

    ShareReport
  16. #016

    At around the 48-minute mark, the Cat and his companions must cross a large chasm to reach the golden eggs. To do so, the Cat uses his sword to pop the cork off a champagne bottle and carries the trio across on the cork. The art of opening a champagne bottle with a sword is called sabrage.

    INTERESTING FACTS · SOURCED

    ShareReport
  17. #017

    It was the first DreamWorks Animation spin-off.

    INTERESTING FACTS · SOURCED

    ShareReport
  18. #018

    The film was released 10 years after the original Shrek (2001).

    INTERESTING FACTS · SOURCED

    ShareReport
  19. #019

    Four years later, writer Brian Lynch would write the screenplay for Minions (2015), Illumination's spin-off of the Despicable Me series.

    INTERESTING FACTS · SOURCED

    ShareReport
  20. #020

    After Disney's Winnie the Pooh (2011), it was the second animated film of 2011 composed by Henry Jackman.

    INTERESTING FACTS · SOURCED

    ShareReport
  21. #021

    The film was influenced by the Western genre.

    INTERESTING FACTS · SOURCED

    ShareReport

Production Story (1)

  1. #022

    Unlike the Shrek films, which had a production time of only 3 years (except for the first film, which took 4½-5 years), this film was in production for 7½ years. It began development in 2004, immediately after the premiere of Shrek 2 (2004).

    PRODUCTION STORY · SOURCED

    ShareReport

Easter Eggs & References (2)

  1. #023

    This film also makes extensive references to The Mask of Zorro (1998), which likewise starred Antonio Banderas.

    EASTER EGGS & REFERENCES · SOURCED

    ShareReport
  2. #024

    (At about 1 hour 17 minutes) One of the women from San Ricardo says that the Cat's boots are made of soft Corinthian leather. This is a reference to the 1975 Chrysler Cordoba commercial in which Ricardo Montalban described the seats as being made of "rich Corinthian leather"; Montalban appeared alongside Antonio Banderas and Salma Hayek in Spy Kids 3: Game Over (2003).

    EASTER EGGS & REFERENCES · SOURCED

    ShareReport

Deeper Meaning (2)

  1. #025

    The film was hinted at at the end of Shrek Forever After (2010). When Shrek puts the Shrek book back on the shelf, a Puss in Boots book is beside it.

    DEEPER MEANING · SOURCED

    ShareReport
  2. #026

    As with the main Shrek films, Puss in Boots was released in the same year as a Harry Potter film, Harry Potter and the Deathly Hallows: Part 2 (2011). Shrek (2001) was released in the same year as Harry Potter and the Philosopher's Stone (2001); Shrek 2 (2004) was released in the same year as Harry Potter and the Prisoner of Azkaban (2004); Shrek the Third (2007) was released in the same year as Harry Potter and the Order of the Phoenix (2007); and Shrek Forever After (2010) was released in the same year as Harry Potter and the Deathly Hallows: Part 1 (2010).

    DEEPER MEANING · SOURCED

    ShareReport

Career & Awards (1)

  1. #027

    This marked the first time since 2004 that two DreamWorks films were nominated for Best Animated Feature. This film and the other DWA film Kung Fu Panda 2 (2011) were nominated. In 2004, Shrek 2 (2004) and Shark Tale (2004) were nominated. However, none of these films won. In 2004 both nominees lost to The Incredibles (2004), and in 2011 both nominees lost to Rango (2011).

    CAREER & AWARDS · SOURCED

    ShareReport

Sources & editorial notes

Reference databases

  • IMDb IMDb title page (trivia)

Information from external sources is independently selected, consolidated and edited by Arka Evren. Sources are listed for verification and further reading. Encyclopedia text is used under its licence (CC BY-SA). How we work