With over $4.6 billion in box office revenue (and more to come very soon), Despicable Me is the highest grossing animated franchise of all time. Every film in the series has been all over Netflix’s Top 10 this year, and based on what we know so far about Despicable Me 4, it’s easy to assume that Illumination will continue this trend of raking in the cash. So what gives? What’s the key to the animation studio’s success? I asked Joey King and Miranda Cosgrove, two of the film’s stars, and they had some solid insight into the Illumination “formula.”
When speaking with King, who is new to the franchise as the voice of Poppy, I mentioned that I felt Despicable Me 4’s humor was similar to that of 1980’s Airplane!. After all, they are both absurdist, non-stop joke machines. She agreed and continued in the attempt to try and pin down just what it is Illumination is doing right:
There’s also a rapid fire joke aspect that also Airplane! has, which is like, every moment is filled with something funny and it never gets tiring. And it’s also clever, unique, very different from the last joke, niche… I just think they’ve they’ve got the equation down. The formula.
Well, there you go. That’s a pretty solid sales pitch for Despicable Me 4. While we never got the new Airplane! sequel, maybe you can find solace in the new minions adventure. Miranda Cosgrove, who voices Margo, also had a theory regarding the franchise’s success. It’s more of a mixed bag, including that Pharrell Williams’ contributions to the soundtrack shouldn’t be overlooked:
I feel like the way the animation looks is really kind of unique and special. The music adds so much, with what Pharrell [Williams] does. It’s kind of awesome that they’ve really got it down.
Pharrell Williams certainly has given the franchise an iconic sound, some experience that will come into play with his upcoming movie musical. To give you a taste of the mark he’s left on the Despicable Me films, take a peak at this clip from the upcoming film featuring an original Pharrell Williams song:
If you’re looking to get hyped in these days leading up to Despicable Me 4’s release, you should check out our full interview with Joey King, Miranda Cosgrove, Will Ferrell and Steve Carell. We’ve also outlined how you can watch the Despicable Me films in order with a Peacock subscription, and we’ll surely update our ranking of all Minions films when the time comes. Needless to say, we here at CinemaBlend have always hyped the Despicable Me franchise, and this one is no exception.
You can see Despicable Me 4 in theaters on July 3! As for everything else coming up on the 2024 movies schedule, we’ll keep you updated.