First Minions: The Rise of Gru Trailer Gives Steve Carell's Character An Origin Story

Minions: Rise of Gru a Minion in front of a tye-dye background, with braces

It’s been a while since we’ve seen Gru and his Minions on screen together, as 2017’s Despicable Me 3 served as the latest adventure in the hit that put production company Illumination on the map. Which makes the plot for Minions: The Rise of Gru all the more fitting as Steve Carell’s heartwarming villain is getting more of an origin story in this latest animated comedy.

And you can see what part of that story entails, through the first trailer to Minions: The Rise of Gru!

A bit young to be trying to take over the world, Gru finds himself and his Minions embarking on a quest that every would-be villain in the Despicable Me universe dreams of fulfilling: becoming a member of the Vicious 6. Of course, with a new villain organization comes some new villains, and an impressive voice cast to bring them to live.

Opposing Steve Carell’s Gru in Minions: The Rise of Gru are vicious antagonists such as Belle Bottom (Taraji P. Henson,) Nunchuck (Lucy Lawless,) and Jean Clawed (Jean-Claude Van Damme,) among the rest of the Vicious 6 and whomever they should employ to retrieve a magical stone that Gru has stolen from their lair.

The shenanigans on the menu for Minions: The Rise of Gru feel very much in line with what we’ve seen before, not only as part of the Despicable Me series, but also in the previous prequel effort Minions. Seeing as only the little yellow assistants to evil could repeatedly recover an important stone, only to trade it for some kids’ Pet Rock, this ‘70s flavored romp further fills in the backstory to Gru’s rise to evil power in a way that fans are going to truly fall for.

You can see the true beginnings of our favorite mastermind’s eventual rise to power in Minions: The Rise of Gru, as this trailer has finally confirmed this long held notion that the next Minions film would cover such an event. With a smaller band of Minions and a much smaller base of operations that still somehow has multicolored lighting that has everything looking like a party, Gru’s humble origins are ready to finally be told.

All that’s missing is any indication of whether previous Minions baddies Scarlet Overkill (Sandra Bullock) and her husband, Herb (Jon Hamm,) or any other characters previously introduced in this spinoff universe, will be returning. Whether any more familiar faces show up or not, there’s a good chance that this movie could become one of 2020’s highest grossing films, seeing as the Despicable Me universe has consistently spawned insanely successful hits.

All these questions, and more, will be answered when Minions: The Rise of Gru makes the world a little more despicable on July 3.

Mike Reyes
Senior Movies Contributor

Mike Reyes is the Senior Movie Contributor at CinemaBlend, though that title’s more of a guideline really. Passionate about entertainment since grade school, the movies have always held a special place in his life, which explains his current occupation. Mike graduated from Drew University with a Bachelor’s Degree in Political Science, but swore off of running for public office a long time ago. Mike's expertise ranges from James Bond to everything Alita, making for a brilliantly eclectic resume. He fights for the user.