DreamWorks Animation’s catalog of animated films features no shortage of can’t-miss iconic titles. For the past several decades, the studio has established itself as a leading force in the animation world with hits like Antz, How to Train Your Dragon, and Bee Movie, and some of those movies have gone on to launch franchises. One of DreamWorks’ most successful non-Shrek series just made its way to Prime Video, but fans will still have to hunt down at least one title in the franchise.
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Most of the Madagascar franchise is now streaming on Prime Video as part of the Amazon streamer’s December roundup. The main franchise centers around four Central Park Zoo animals—Alex the lion, Marty the zebra, Melman the giraffe, and Gloria the hippo— who find themselves shipwrecked on the island of Madagascar after being shipped from their comfortable captivity. Madagascar, Madagascar: Escape 2 Africa, and the penguins-focused spin-off Penguins of Madagascar started streaming on Prime on December 1st, but Madagascar 3: Europe’s Most Wanted, the final film in the main trilogy, didn’t join them.
Madagascar Is One of DreamWorks’ Most Successful Non-Shrek Series
The Madagascar franchise launched in 2005 as one of DreamWorks’ first post-Shrek film series, and it became a commercially and critically successful franchise in its own right. The original trilogy collectively grossed nearly $2 billion worldwide, with the 78% Rotten Tomatoes “Certified Fresh” Madagascar 3: Europe’s Most Wanted seeing the largest box office win with a $747 million worldwide total.
Watching the films, it’s easy to see why the Madagascar movies have been so popular. Every movie in the franchise is ridiculously fun, and the main trilogy in particular features iconic characters with bold personalities that are hard to forget. The main films did a great job of building the story over time, evolving from a story about survival and returning home into one about finding where one truly belongs, and they packed plenty of humor and action along the way.
Although Penguins of Madagascar continued the high-ratings trend, earning a 75% critic score and 63% audience rating, it underperformed at the box office. The film’s $373 million global haul marked a drastic decrease compared to the three other films’ box office runs and, in combination with DreamWorks Animation’s corporate restructuring in 2015, seemingly contributed to the cancellation of the previously announced Madagascar 4, effectively ending the main movie series.
Where to Stream the Rest of the Madagascar Franchise?
Prime Video is only hosting three titles in the Madagascar franchise, but there are still ways for fans to watch the entire series. Madagascar 3: Europe’s Most Wanted is available to stream on The Roku Channel and is also available to rent or purchase online, including on Prime Video.
The Madagascar franchise also spawned several TV series, the first being The Penguins of Madagascar, which arrived in 2008 and aired for three seasons through 2015. The series is currently only streaming on The Roku Channel. The 2014 through 2017 animated prequel series All Hail King Julien is currently only available to rent or buy, and Madagascar: A Little Wild, which centers around Alex, Marty, Gloria, and Melman as children in a rescue habitat at the Central Park Zoo, is available to stream on Hulu, Disney+, and Peacock.
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