Has the Minion Facade Gone Too Far?

Months before the movie, Minions: Rise of Gru, premiered the tiny, yellow, monsters had a chokehold on Tik Tok. It began as people were making videos gossiping about the star-studded soundtrack highlighting artists such as Diana Ross, Phoebe Bridgers, and Tame Impala. It ended with movie theatres being shut down as teenagers caused a ruckus in their pressed suits and blue overalls. 

Suddenly, this movie went from having a target audience of children––to teenagers. According to Dateline, it amassed over 125.1 million dollars an opening week, which is more than any other Despicable Me or Minions film. 

Although some may seem skeptical, Tik Tok and social media had a strong influence on the popularity of this film. Nevertheless, meme culture triumphed over classic cinema, and tons of teenagers flocked to theatres in button-down shirts, overalls, and yellow shirts, to view this film. This facade, titled, #gentleminion, accompanied by Yeat’s Rich Minion song, has drawn millions of people to the hashtag and to theatres. 

To see how long the crowded theatres and movie-going attire lasted, I compared the availability of tickets as well as the quality of the movie. Beginning in early July, approximately two days after the movie was released, I tried to get a ticket to the three movie theatres closest to me. There was little to no luck. The only seats available were nestled in the back or in the front row––no thanks. 

I communicated with a friend who was a part of this Minion Mayhem, so to speak. She was involved in this trend and took it upon herself to dress up in Minion attire and attend the 10 PM show. Since she went to a later showing, there were not too many children and a couple of groups of teenagers. Nothing like the videos circulating Tik Tok. 

Regardless, the moment I looked at this buzzing hashtag, movie theatres across the country was surrounded by the aforementioned videos. Each video showed groups of teens yelling and cheering as the movie started––one even showed a mosh pit at the front of the theatre. 

Like all social media trends, they die quickly. To see if people were simply coming to the movie to view the movie, or to participate in the trend, I attended a screening two weeks after it came out. I nervously checked the Regal website the day before I went, anticipating a sold-out theatre. To my surprise, every seat was available. 

So I made my way on a typical Summer night to my local theatre and bought my ticket. By the time I arrived, another family with two small children had also purchased tickets at the theatre and made their way to their seats. 

As a strong Minion lover, before this whole social media craze occurred, I entered the theatre with neutral expectations. As much as I wanted this film to exceed my expectations, I knew that would be a challenge given how much I love the Despicable Me Franchise and previous Minion movies. 

The film began with a black female villain, Belle Bottom, which instantly got a scribble in my notes. I appreciated the attempt at diversifying what we usually see as the stereotypical white supervillain. Also, there was additional respect for the Chinese community throughout the film, especially through karate and the Chinese New Year parade. Normalizing those rather normal experiences will stop younger audiences from stigmatizing groups embracing their culture. 

To be completely honest, the rest of the film did not phase me. There were no strong morals or quotes that stuck, it checked all the boxes for a children’s film––that is all. With that being said, the Minion: Rise of Gru movie was an entertaining Summer watch, but I would not have anticipated that much of a social media movement toward the film. 

One could argue that the success of this film was not only because of TikTok, but also the elaborate Marketing ideas that Illumination created. Ranging from worldwide activations, IHOP menus, Snapchat extensions, and more. My personal favorite was the combination of Steve Carrell's prized characters––Michael Scott and Gru––as the Minions took the place of Office characters, mimicking the iconic theme song. 

Nevertheless, the Minions had successful feedback as well as a large social media presence that undoubtedly influenced others to attend theatres to watch these yellow creatures back on the big screen. As for the teenagers, I am sure they are just having some Summer fun…