It’s been almost half a decade since former mad scientist Gru and his family appeared on the big screen. Unfortunately, that absence is going to going to extend to a full seven years. The good news is that Despicable Me 4 finally has a release date: July 3, 2024.
Via Variety, Universal Pictures and Illumination Entertainment also confirmed that most of the Despicable Me vocal cast will be back for the next sequel. That includes Steve Carell, Kristen Wiig, Pierre Coffin, Miranda Cosgrove, and Steve Coogan. Carell, Cosgrove, Coffin, and Wiig have been a part of the franchise since Despicable Me in 2010.
In the first film, Gru (Carell) was a supervillain who adopted three young orphans as part of an evil scheme. However, Margo (Cosgrove), Edith (Dana Gaier), and Agnes (Elsie Fisher) warmed Gru’s cold heart and he embraced his role as their adoptive father. Wiig had a minor role in the first film before appearing in the sequels as Gru’s girlfriend (and later wife) Lucy Wilde, a member of the Anti-Villain League. Coogan portrays Lucy and Gru’s Anti-Villain League boss, Silas Ramsbottom, while Coffin provides the voices of Gru’s adorable Minions.
Despicable Me and Despicable Me 2 director Chris Renaud will co-direct Despicable Me 4 with Patrick Delage from a script by Mike White. Later this year, the prequel movie, Minions: The Rise of Gru, will feature Carell and Coffin in their roles as young Gru and the Minions. Other cast members include Taraji P. Henson, Michelle Yeoh, RZA, Jean-Claude Van Damme, Lucy Lawless, Dolph Lundgren, Danny Trejo, Russell Brand, Julie Andrews and Alan Arkin. Minions: The Rise of Gru will hit theaters on July 1st of this year.
Additionally, Universal and Illumination will release a non-Despicable Me film in 2023. Benjamin Renner is set to direct Migration, an animated film about family of ducks who attempt to migrate from New England to the Bahamas with a trip to New York City along the way. That film will flap into theaters on June 30, 2023.
