Puss in Boots: Nine Lives & Forty Thieves

Puss in Boots: Nine Lives & Forty Thieves was the original sequel to the 2011 film, Puss in Boots. It was announced in June 2014 to be released on November 2, 2018, only to face numerous delays and would eventually be shelved. Elements and themes would survive in the 2022 film, Puss in Boots: The Last Wish.

Story[]

Only concept art and storyboards remain to provide an idea of what the film was about. However, the film contained several elements and characters that would be carried over into the final sequel. These include Puss in Boots being on his last life, residing in a cat home (in this case a palace), having a chihuahua sidekick, and venturing through more surreal, exotic locations. The main plot would be loosely based on the Arabian Nights folktale, "Ali Baba and the Forty Thieves," with the setting being a fantastical version of Morocco. Much like The Last Wish, the film would've also been set after the events of the main Shrek series.

Known Characters[]

Puss in Boots
Kitty Softpaws
Chichi (prototype of Perrito)
Badger
Ali Baba
The Forty Thieves
Camel
Snake Charmer

Known Locations[]

Production[]

After the success of Puss in Boots, talks of a sequel immediately began in 2012. While details were scarce at the time, director Chris Miller revealed his intentions to bring Puss to "new and exotic locations," and create a full-fledged spaghetti western. He also wanted to make audiences believe the new film was in a whole different universe, not previously associated with the main Shrek films. Development of the project was kept secret for a couple more years, until it was announced as part of a giant slate of future releases on June 12, 2014. The sequel, now titled Puss in Boots 2: Nine Lives & Forty Thieves, was set to debut on November 2, 2018 as the last major release. Later that year, it would be pushed back to December 21, 2018.

A year later, Antonio Banderas confirmed that the script was being rewritten. However, after a major restructuring at DreamWorks Animation, the film would be quietly removed from its intended schedule. It was concluded that the project had been shelved, as there were no updates since 2015. In late 2018, Illumination founder and CEO Chris Meledandri was hired as executive producer for Shrek 5 and Puss in Boots 2. Later in February 2019, Bob Persichetti would be attached to direct with Latifa Ouaou overseeing the project. Around this time, concept art of Nine Lives & Forty Thieves would begin to surface. For a time, this version was believed to still be in development. However, the sequel would be retitled to Puss in Boots: The Last Wish, with Joel Crawford replacing Persichetti as director.

Following the release of Puss in Boots: The Last Wish on December 21, 2022, more concept art, storyboards, and visual development pieces of the original sequel surfaced. Specific story beats would survive in the final version, but was largely different in tone and setting- displaying heavy influence from the Arabian Nights and Moroccan architecture. Characters like Perrito would be kept, while others such as the main antagonist, Badger, were cut. It is currently unknown if the film made it into pre-production.

Gallery[]

Trivia[]

This would be the second installment of the Shrek franchise that originally had a drastically different version than the one that was ultimately made.
- It followed the original 1995-1997 version of Shrek.
This film would've officially confirmed the Shrek franchise being set on earth, as the geographic map for the film displays the real-life Morocco and the region of Andalusia- where Gibraltar is located.
- Morocco would be glimpsed in the background of Mama Luna's Cat Rescue in Puss in Boots: The Last Wish. The house also features light influence from the country's general architecture.
One of the only visual remnants to survive was the Magic Carpet.
The basic concept was created by Guillermo del Toro, who was an executive producer on Puss in Boots.
Shrek was allegedly planned to appear in the film. What role he would have had is currently unknown.
- Shrek, along with Donkey, would eventually appear in a flashback in Puss in Boots: The Last Wish.