After stealing the show in both Despicable Me movies (which is plotting a third installment for 2017), Gru’s adorable, unintelligible henchmen are finally getting their own spinoff. In Minions, arriving this July, it appear that the little yellow guys have a much more complicated backstory than you might have thought. As the latest trailer for the pic reveals, the Minions have been looking for a truly evil master to serve since the dawn of time.
The cute and colorful preview sets up a huge history for the Minions but mostly takes place in 1960s New York, as the goofy mischief-makers find themselves in the employ of Scarlet Overkill (Sandra Bullock), the world’s first female supervillain. Jon Hamm, Michael Keaton, Allison Janney and Steve Coogan are also in the cast. Here’s the illuminating synopsis:
The story of Universal Pictures and Illumination Entertainment’s Minions begins at the dawn of time. Starting as single-celled yellow organisms, Minions evolve through the ages, perpetually serving the most despicable of masters. After accidentally killing off so many of them—from T. rex to Napoleon—the Minions find themselves without a master to serve and fall into a deep depression.
But one Minion named Kevin has a plan, and he—alongside teenage rebel Stuart and lovable little Bob—ventures out into the world to find a new evil boss for his brethren to follow.
The trio embarks upon an adventure that ultimately leads them to their next potential master, Scarlet Overkill (Academy Award® winner Sandra Bullock), the world’s first-ever female super-villain. They travel from frigid Antarctica to 1960s New York City, ending in mod London, where they must face their biggest challenge to date: saving all of Minionkind…from annihilation.
Featuring a soundtrack of hit music from the ’60s that still permeates our culture today, Minions is produced by Illumination’s Chris Meledandri and Janet Healy, and is directed by Pierre Coffin and Kyle Balda. Brian Lynch has written the screenplay for the 3D-CG comedy adventure, and Chris Renaud serves as executive producer of the film.
Minions opens July 10.