‘Shrek 2’ beats original’s profits

By midday Wednesday, “Shrek 2” had surpassed in 15 days the $267.7 million the original “Shrek” grossed in its entire domestic run. By this morning, the film was expected to have taken in at least $270 million.

With moviegoers still flocking to theaters, DreamWorks has been busy lining up writers for “Shrek 3,” although the studio declined to confirm or deny a Variety report that it had hired Peter Seaman and Jeffrey Price as screenwriters (both worked on “How the Grinch Stole Christmas” and “Who Framed Roger Rabbit” -- but also on “Wild Wild West”) and Jon Zack (“The Perfect Score”) as a consultant.