Happily N'Ever After is a 2006 animated fantasy adventure comedy film directed by Paul J. Bolger, produced by John H. Williams, and written by Rob Moreland.

[4][5] The title is the opposite of a stock phrase, happily ever after; the name is contracted with an apostrophe between the N and the E. The film stars the voices of Sarah Michelle Gellar, Freddie Prinze, Jr., Andy Dick, Wallace Shawn, Patrick Warburton, George Carlin, and Sigourney Weaver.

With the help of his assistants, the uptight Munk and the rascally Mambo, the Wizard checks to make sure that all the fairy tales under his care are "on track" to have their traditional happy endings.

Fortunately, the Fairy Godmother arrives and grants Ella a gorgeous dress, as well as glass slippers to wear, on the condition she returns home before midnight.

Ella, finally fed up with Frieda's treatment of her, punches her in the rift, banishing her from Fairy Tale Land forever and setting the stories back in place.

With the Scales tipped back into balance and the kingdom regained, Ella and Rick decide to choose their own destinies in a world of happy endings and get married, while a few other fairy tale characters (including the reformed Rumplestiltskin) start to follow suit.

Matt Zoller Seitz of The New York Times wrote that "Anyone who dismisses the 'Shrek' movies as lowbrow junk should see Happily N'Ever After, a cartoon feature that apes those films' visuals, soundtrack choices and rude jokes, while throwing away their sweetness and conviction[...] the filmmakers are content to repeat fairy-tale tropes in a smug directorial voice.

"[9] Writing for Empire, Simon Braund felt that "[The film] comes up severely wanting, a perfectly workable premise[...] hamstrung by lazy plotting and limp dialogue that ill-serves a solid voice cast.

"[10] Variety's Peter Debruge was more mixed on the feature, praising the film's voice acting and dialogue, but criticized "...its insincere love story" and "over-sexualized character design".

[11] Writing for Los Angeles Times, Alex Ching found that a few of the vocal performances were enjoyable, but criticized the romance between the two main characters and felt the celebrity voice cast was "[...] not nearly enough to shake the feeling that 'Happily N'Ever After' is the last hangover from the animation glut that was 2006.

[13] A direct-to-video sequel, titled Happily N'Ever After 2: Snow White—Another Bite @ the Apple, was released on DVD on March 24, 2009 by Lionsgate Home Entertainment.