'Despicable Me 3' to raid box office
THE FIRST “Despicable Me” saw hunchback villain Gru become an accidental hero, the second cast him as an unlikely secret agent. This threequel, arriving June 30 in US theaters, sends him back to his roots.
Fourth in the franchise, thanks to 2015’s billion dollar spin-off “Minions,” this latest outing reunites reformed supervillain, ex-secret agent Gru with his suave, scheming and spectacularly rich twin brother Dru.
Gru and Dru could hardly be more different. Clothing, cars, and career paths are part of it. Dru has hair and Gru does not.
But as Gru soon finds out, some family traits unite the long-lost brothers, especially a penchant for villainous schemes.
Having bungled the capture of 1980s-obsessed purpletracksuited baddie, Balthazar Bratt, and being fired from the Anti-Villain League along with his recruiter and wife, Lucy, Gru is enticed back into a life of crime using equipment from Dru’s mansion lair.
Steve Carell returns as Gru (and now Dru,) with Kristen Wiig back as Lucy Wilde.
Miranda Cosgrove reprises her role as Gru’s eldest adoptive daughter, Margo, as does Dana Gaier as middle child Edith, while newcomer Nev Scharrel is Gru’s youngest, Agnes.
Steve Coogan stays as AVL director Silas Ramsbottom, doing double duty as Fritz (after a turn as both Professor Flux and a tower guard in “Minions.”) Julie Andrews of “The Sound of Music” and “Mary Poppins” brings Gru’s Mom back from the first “Despicable Me,” and codirectors Pierre Coffin and Kyle Balda make the usual cameos.
But where Benjamin Bratt played the villainous El Macho in “Despicable Me 2,” now “South Park” co-creator and voice actor Trey Parker comes in as new bad guy Balthazar Bratt, a first non-”South Park” role since 2004.
Can “Despicable Me 3” get away with a massive haul? Universal Pictures is certainly shaping up to loot the international and domestic box office.
With some 4,529 locations secured for its June 30 US debut, “Despicable Me 3” is set to become the widest domestic theatrical opening in history, a record held since 2010 by “The Twilight Saga: Eclipse” (per TheWrap.)
Its arrival timed for Independence Day weekend, Universal is forecasting an US$85 million opening weekend; other analysts predict up to US$100m.
Those estimates place “Despicable Me 3” beyond 2013’s “Despicable Me 2” (an US$83m opening) but short of 2015’s “Minions” (US$115m.)
That’s in line with critic and audience review scores which, over the course of the franchise, suggest that appetites might be shrinking for this particular brand of all-age comedy.
While “Minions” did especially well at the box office, it received poor feedback, and residual hesitance could impact “Despicable Me 3” as a result.
Either way, it’s got a full month to become the year’s biggest animated hit before July’s “Emoji Movie” begins to make a mark. — Relaxnews