Shrek agrees and the duo set out on a journey to the Dragon's Keep Fiona is locked away in a castle, guarded by a fire-breathing dragon. When he wins, this intrigues Farquaad and he cuts a deal with Shrek: If he rescues his princess, he will give Shrek's swamp back. Farquaad declares that the knight who kills Shrek will become champion, but Shrek easily defeats all of Farquaad's knights with the help of Donkey. Upon arriving at Duloc, Shrek interrupts a tournament being held by Farquaad to determine which knight he will send to rescue Princess Fiona for him. Outraged, Shrek takes Donkey and goes to his castle to demand his swamp back. Shrek demands to know why they have come and learns that Lord Farquaad has dumped them all there. However, more fairy tale creatures soon arrive and begin to overcrowd his swamp. A grateful Donkey thanks Shrek repeatedly (to the latter's irritation) and convinces him to spend the night outside of Shrek's house. The Captain of the Duloc Guards orders Shrek to be arrested, but Shrek effortlessly scares them off and saves Donkey.
One day in the forest, a talking Donkey enters Shrek's territory pursued by a group of Duloc guards. Although Shrek wasn't violent yet he was still thought of as an evil hideous ogre to some. Even though his background is unknown, it is assumed that most ogres hurt people. He enjoys his own life at his home like taking mud baths, brushing his teeth with bug paste, and farting in his pool.
At first, he appears to like being by himself and enjoys scaring people, but never hurts them. Shrek lives in a swamp in the middle of the forest by himself. Although they didn't want him to go, they had to follow the "ogre rules". He lived with his parents until his 7th birthday.
Shrek was born to an unnamed father and mother about thirty years prior to when he rescued Fiona. He also wears olive green pants and brown short boots with a light brown, folded design in each side. While a human, Shrek disregarded his now-baggy clothes for a brown, sleeveless armor shirt with an olive green trim and markings of leaves, along with a white long sleeved tunic. In Shrek 2, when he was transformed into a human after drinking the Happily Ever After Potion, Shrek became a tall and muscular man with short dark brown hair with a single fringe sprouted on the left side. He wears a white long sleeved tunic within his brown turtle designed mini vest, brown pinstriped pants and dark short boots with a rip folded design in each side. Shrek is a green rotund ogre with brown eyes and a bald head.