“Don’t get excited,” Despicable Me franchise star Steve Carell told a filled Colosseum at Caesars Palace before Universal’s presentation of Minions: The Rise of Gru.
“I have no gifts for you and no jokes about my balls,” quipped Carell, a reference to Jo Koy’s stand-up bit before him for Uni’s Easter Sunday, and the sweatshirts he handed out to attendees.
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“Theaters are the lifeblood of the industry and the joy of moviegoing,” Carell said, “and I wouldn’t exist without you.”
“You are important and I love you,” he added.
“No, no, no wait: I am in love with you. You had me at CinemaCon.”
The former Daily Show correspondent spoke with Everod Allen, general manager of Cineplex Winston Churchill Theatre in Oakville, Ontario, Canada, about the shared experience of moviegoing. Allen and his family are huge Despicable Me fans and even have their own impersonations of Gru, which he shared onstage with Carell.
“Hello, I’m Gru and these are my girls,” said Allen in a so-so imitation that received claps. Carell then gave him some direction, saying his pitch needs to be higher. Allen’s second try was even better. Carell gave Allen a gift: The theater manager animated with the Minions by the Illumination team.
The trailer for Rise of Gru, an origin story, showed the Minions as a flight crew, wreaking havoc as they prepare to take off for San Francisco, and intercut with scenes of mayhem and shots of Gru as a mischievous youngster rounding up the little fellas.
The prequel, after being delayed for two years due to Covid, hits theaters on July 1.
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