Minions

One of the biggest hits of the summer is coming to streaming.

And the next ‘Minions’ has been pushed back by an entire year.

It’s a Minion world, and we’re all just living in it. The little pill-shaped yellow critters have left an indelible imprint on the cultural mainstream, for better (footage not found) or for worse (try googling “minions memes,” I dare you). Kids and adults alike have latched onto the phenomenon with an uncommon enthusiasm, and now the numbers reflect the totality with which the Despicable Me universe has permeated modern life. In the seven brief years since Illumination Entertainment loosed the original Despicable Me on an innocent populace, the franchise has grown into the largest of its kind — the highest-grossing animated franchise of all time.

Look, you can’t blame a studio for taking notice when something is working and wanting to replicate their own success. Sequels wouldn’t get greenlit unless someone, somewhere, wanted them. It makes perfect fiscal sense for upstart animation studio Illumination to follow up on their blockbusters Minions, The Secret Life of Pets, and Sing. But, god, did they have to announce them all at once like that?

Minions are literally everywhere right now and not everyone thinks they're as lovable as they seem. Film director Lee Hardcastle made a claymation video of ways minions can die.

Universal was already bathing in its Furious 7 and Jurassic World money Scrooge McDuck-style before Minions opened this week. Now the studio is looking at its third truly massive hit of the year, a run that feels nearly unprecedented. Universal already released two of the biggest movies of all time within the past four months, and now it’s looking like it may have three.

Giving the little yellow sidekicks from the Despicable Me films was inevitable, but at least Minions looks fun. The new, full trailer for the spinoff has arrived, taking you on a journey back through time to learn the origins of these weird little creatures and following them on their endeavor to find a new villain to serve.