Gru’s emotional intelligence has never been on the same level as his supervillain know-how, so it was perhaps inevitable that this year’s Despicable Me 3 would see the ex-master criminal dealing with (even more) relationship problems. Whereas Despicable Me revolves around Gru (voiced by Steve Carrell) attempting to become a good father to his adopted daughters and Despicable Me 2 follows Gru into the chaotic and unpredictable world of dating, the third Despicable Me involves Gru discovering that he has a twin brother - one with a full head of hair, no less, and who goes by the name of Dru (also Carrell).

The preview for the new Despicable Me 3 trailer (released online yesterday, at the time of writing this) teases Gru’s initial meeting with Dru, without actually revealing what the latter is like in the process. Illumination Entertainment has now unveiled the second Despicable Me 3 trailer in full, painting a clearer picture of the Gru/Dru dynamic in the movie and promising more in the way of the zany, cartoon mayhem that audiences have come to expect from (and appreciate about) the Despicable Me movie franchise, in the process.

Dru, as presented in the latest Despicable Me 3 trailer (see the video above), is the antithesis to Gru with respect to everything from his personality to his sense of fashion - and of course, his flowing hair. As revealed by the first Despicable Me 3 trailer, Gru has a new enemy in the movie - former ’80s child star-turned supervillain Balthazar Bratt (Trey Parker) - that will require him to work through his sibling issues and (presumably) eventually team up with Dru, in his efforts to stop Balthazar and save the day again. That said, the new poster below does a good job of summing up what Gru and Dru’s relationship will be like, for the majority of Despicable Me 3’s running time.

Co-directed by Pierre Coffin (Despicable Me 1 & 2), Kyle Balda (Minions) and longtime Illumination animated character designer Eric Guillon, Despicable Me 3 also brings back Gru’s now-wife Lucy (Kristen Wiig) from Despicable Me 2, as well as the ex-supervillain’s many Minions and three daughters: Agnes (Nev Scharrel), Edith (Dana Gaier) and Margo (Miranda Cosgrove). Russell Brand is also reprising his voice role as Gru’s sidekick, Dr. Nefario, while Steven Coogan returns as the Anti-Villain League director Silas Ramsbottom - making this a proper reunion for the core Despicable Me franchise ensemble.

Despicable Me 2 was arguably guilty of focusing as much on setting up the (wildly popular) Minions spinoff as it was on continuing Gru’s story, so the indication that Despicable Me 3 instead keeps the spotlight on Gru and his extended family, is welcome news in that respect. The Despicable Me “brand” of humor naturally isn’t as fresh as it once was either, but Illumination continues to thrive as an animation powerhouse for good reason and there will no doubt be a similarly sizable audience in the mood for more of Gru and Co.’s shenanigans, when their next adventure hits the big screen this summer.

Source: Illumination Entertainment

  • Despicable Me 3 Release Date: 2017-06-30