Universal Pictures has released a new trailer for "Minions: The Rise of Gru," also known as Minions 2. The new computer-animated film produced by Illumination is the fifth installment in the Despicable Me franchise and the sequel to the spin-off prequel Minions (2015).

In the past decade, the Despicable Me franchise and the company behind it, Illumination, have revolutionized animated films, releasing box office hits after box office hits. It has been a tough year or two for international animation houses and studios, but Illumination and its premier franchise are looking forward to a brighter future, beginning with the upcoming film Minions: The Rise of Gru.

An animation, adventure, comedy, crime, family, and sci-fi genre are mashed into one movie called "Minions: The Rise of Gru. " Their tagline "Brace Yourself", not only represent the new Minion, Otto, who has braces, but also a heads up for viewers for a more adventurous journey of Gru with the Minions.

After seeing Gru and his villain-obsessed yellow friends for the first time in Minions (2015), it appears The Rise of Gru will pick up right where that movie left off.

The storyline

A 12-year-old Gru grows up in the suburbs in the early 1970s. In order to join a supervillain group called the Vicious 6, Gru devises a plan to become evil enough to join them. Gru receives an interview to become the newest member of the Vicious 6 after they fired their leader, Wild Knuckles.

Things do not go well, and only worsen when Gru, with the help from Kevin, Stuart, Bob, Otto, and the other Minions, steal a precious stone from the Vicious 6. They soon become the newly found enemy of the apex of evil.

In this situation, even bad guys need a little help sometimes, so Gru and the Minions turn to an unlikely source for guidance, the Wild Knuckles himself.

Steve Carell, Taraji P. Henson, Michelle Yeoh, Julie Andrews, RZA (Robert Fitzgerald Diggs), Lucy Lawless, Dolph Lundgren, Jean-Claude Van Damme, Danny Trejo, Russell Brand, and Alan Arkin are among the returning voice cast members of this movie.

Behind the scenes

The sequel was first officially announced in 2017, and production started in July of that year. Illumination reported that Kyle Balda, who co-directed Minions and Despicable Me 3 with Pierre Coffin, is returning for Minions: The Rise of Gru, as are Brad Ableson and Jonathan del Val. 

Balda has been involved in the Despicable Me franchise in some form or another for the last four films. Balda's work is only absent from Despicable Me 2 from 2013.

Scriptwriter Brian Lynch has returned to write the sequel to the 2015 box office smash hit The Rise of Gru. From the studio's second feature film, Hop, in 2011, Lynch has had a successful career with Illumination. Since then, Lynch has been a writer on films such as The Secret Life of Pets and its sequel, as well as the computer-animated ride The Minion Mayhem at Universal Studios.

The film soundtrack will be composed by Heitor Pereira and Pharrell Williams, like with all prior films in the Despicable Me franchise, but this fifth installment will also have an extra producer helping out with the music. Jack Antonoff, a Grammy Award-winning producer and musician, also created a "great" '70s soundtrack for Minions 2, which can be heard in the trailer video.

Although production is hampered by the ongoing COVID-19 pandemic, with Illumination Entertainment workers working from home and the release date being pushed back to July  2022, they believed this movie is ready to be released following the latest timeline.

The past two Despicable Me movies, Minions and Despicable Me 3, each made over $1 billion at the box office globally according to The Numbers. With costs under $80 million, it's clear that Illumination isn't about to give up on this series anytime in the near future. That's not even taking into consideration the money made from goods, apparel, and Blu-Ray, and DVD sales.