People are convinced they've found the hidden meaning behind random woman's face which appears 21 minutes into Shrek

Shrek fans are flocking online to weigh in on a the 'mystery of the Duloc woman' who can be spotted in the first of the franchise.

While we wait impatiently for the fifth in the iconic franchise currently expected for release in 2026, there's a 'mystery' to keep us occupied - the appearance of a not so mythical looking creature in the 2001 original.

Standing out among the fairytale creatures of Far Far Away, eagle-eyed Shrek fans have pointed out there appears to be a photograph of a real-life woman in the background of a scene.

The image appears in the first Shrek when the swamp-defending ogre (Mike Myers) and 'trusty steed' Donkey (Eddie Murphy) make their way towards Lord Farquaad's castle in Duloc.

And if you pause the movie - whether watching on the Netflix copy or on the original 2001 DVD - when Shrek is about to enter the castle at about 00:21:18, you'll spot an image which seems quite out of place from the rest of the animated characters on screen - what appears to be a photograph of a human woman in the window of a ticket stall.

Unlike the latest season of Squid Game which saw a camera operator picked up in the back of a shot, given Shrek is animated, this wouldn't be a possible explanation here.

And a Reddit user has taken to the thread r/Shrek to reflect on the mystery, saying it 'immediately intrigued' them and they 'knew [they] could offer unique insight into the mystery' given they 'own the oldest physical copy of Shrek [that they think is] possible'.

The woman's face appears in the first Shrek (DreamWorksPictures)

They explained: "I checked this release tonight and found that the woman has always been in the film, even in 2001. This doesn't mean a ton, but it does mean that it's not a Netflix thing and an edit in this spot didn't happen to the film between 2002 and today.

"I have attached photo proof, another photo from my latest Blu-Ray release of the film and a digitally manipulated screenshot from the film on VUDU hoping to show a more accurate representation of the original photo's scale and color.

"It's a difficult thing for me to get in high quality. She's behind a window with lots of reflection on it in the film and the low bitrate of anything except for Blu-Ray makes for a difficult viewing experience of our mystery lady."

What's your theory? (DreamWorks Pictures)

The user has since suggested a potential answer to the 'mystery' explaining their 'cross referencing with photos of animators and other crew members who worked on the film, along with their family members'.

And they're not the only person to suggest it.

Another Redditor commented: "My guess would be an animator or one of their loved ones, since it's hidden and so obviously not meant to be there by it just not fitting in."

"That’s what I thought but she looks like she is crying," another added.

So, what do you think?

UNILAD has previously contacted Dreamworks for comment.