Recapping Gru’s hilarious Despicable Me journey from super-villain to super-dad

Who's ready for more Minions in Despicable Me 4? You soon will be after watching the latest action-packed trailer, which includes Mega Minions and more. Plus, Steve Carell's one-time supervillain Gru is now the father to adorable infant Gru Jr.

Don't forget to go bananas with our Despicable Me 4 merch at Cineworld. There is one cup design with a total of six Mega Minion characters from the film to collect, plus we’ve got one MEGA Mega Minion cup holder. The cup with one topper of your choice is available for just £5.99 when you buy yours with any combo or Munchbox, or for £7.99 on its own. The cup holder is available for £11.99 with any combo or Munchbox, or for £14.99 on its own.

Illumination's latest family adventure again comes from longtime Despicable Me director Chris Renaud. Carell's loveable baddie and his oddball helpers have already powered their way through three blockbusting Despicable Me films and two Minion-centric spin-offs. Here's a recap of Gru's journey from super-villain to super-dad in Despicable Me 4.

Despicable Me (2010)

It's hard to believe that the Despicable Me franchise is nearly 20 years old. We were first introduced to Felonious Gru, and his hilarious assistants the Minions, at the height of his supervillain phase when he planned to steal a shrinking ray and steal the moon.

Illumination's film cemented all of the Despicable Me archetypes that we've come to know and love from the glossy animation to the slapstick pratfalls and the characters. Adorable orphans Margo, Edith and Agnes are initially used as pawns in Gru's nefarious scheme but his heart is ultimately softened while Kristen Wiig voices Miss Hattie, the first of two characters she's played in the franchise.

Despicable Me 2 (2013)

Kristen Wiig returns for the sequel but this time she's voicing secret agent Lucy Wilde who kidnaps Gru and brings him to the Anti-Villain League (or AVL for short). At this stage, Gru has embraced his role as a surrogate dad to the three orphan girls but he can't keep his cackling super-villain tendencies under wraps for long.

Gru's mission is to investigate the theft of a powerful mutagen by El Macho (Benjamin Bratt), a supervillain who seeks to achieve world domination. Fuelled by celebrity voice cameos (Steve Coogan as AVL chief Silas Ramsbottom – no sniggering) and that Pharrell Williams earworm 'Happy', Despicable Me 2 was even more successful than the first film, grossing close to $1 billion worldwide.

Minions (2015)

A Minions spin-off was inevitable given their sheer popularity from the two Despicable Me films. We get to see where the madcap pill-shaped helpers came from, their various masters throughout the ages (all of whom end up dying, including the dinosaurs) and their employment with ruthless baddie Scarlet Overkill (Sandra Bullock). It all culminates with their initial meeting with the young Gru (voiced by Carell), at which point he becomes their permanent master.

Despicable Me 3 (2017)

Gru is established as a member of the Anti-Villain League – until the moment that he's fired, to the delight of the Minions who hope he will return to a life of crime. Instead, Gru embraces his sentimental side and seeks a reconciliation with his long-lost twin brother Dru Gru (also voiced by Carell).

Together, they must defeat Balthazar Bratt (Trey Parker), a supervillain and former child star who grows up to become obsessed with the character that he played in the 1980s and is bent on world domination.

Minions: The Rise of Gru (2022)

It's back to a Minions-centric storyline in this sequel to the 2015 animated blockbuster. Set in 1976, Minions: The Rise of Gru introduces the Vicious 6 and their leader Belle Bottom (Taraji P. Henson), against whom the 11-year-old Gru is pitted. Fortunately, he has his Minions alongside him.