All Despicable Me Movies in Order

With just 5 movies in its arsenal, the Despicable Me franchise holds the title of one of the most profitable animated franchises ever. Over 12 years, Despicable Me has released 5 movies that grossed over four and a half million dollars. With the perfect mix of comedy, adventure, and heartfelt emotions, the Despicable Me franchise has become a massive hit among many.

In the movies, we follow Gru, a supervillain who recently lost a battle of evilness against his nemesis. When he notices that 3 orphans might be helpful in his mission, he decides to adopt them. Spending time with the 3 girls, Gru starts growing attached to them. Will Gru continue his evil doing or turn into a full-time father?

Read: Tinker Bell Movies In Order

With a new sequel slated to release in 2024, there couldn’t be a better time to binge through this franchise. This article will guide you through all the information you need to watch all of Despicable Me in the correct order.

Despicable Me Movies in Release Order

1. Despicable Me

   Streaming On: Netflix

   Directors: Chris Renaud, Pierre Coffin

   Writer: Sergio Pablos

   Stars: Steve Carell, Jason Segel, Russell Brand, Miranda Cosgrove, Dana Gaier, Will Arnett, Pierre Coffin, Kristen Wiig, Julie Andrews, Elise Fisher, Chris Renaud

   Genres: Animation, Adventure, Comedy, Crime, Family, Sci-Fi

   

   Starting the mischievous misadventures of Gru and the Minions, Despicable Me (2010) is a fun and remarkable introductory flick. In it, we follow Gru, recently lost to his nemesis Vector in a heist, so he decides to shrink and steal Earth’s moon.

   When his rival outdoes Gru, Gru comes up with a plan to steal Earth’s moon. Since the mission is expensive, they will need a loan from the villain’s Bank. The Villans Bank will sanction the loan if Grus steals the shrink ray. Gru successfully steals the shrink ray but is intercepted by Vector, who steals the shrink ray.

   After falling to steal the ray back, Gru notices that three orphans were let into Vectors’ house to sell cookies. Gru adopts the three girls and, with their help, steals the shrink ray back. The Bank refuses the loan as they deem Gru useless.

   A heartbroken Gru tells the minions and the girls that he’s broke, so all of them give Gru their savings, enough to resume their mission. Believing the girls are distracting, Dr. Nefario tells the orphanage to take them back.

   Also Read: Ice Age Movies

   Gru successfully steals the moon but returns to find that Vector kidnapped the girls from the recital. Gru gives the moon to Vector but refuses to return the girls, so Gru starts storming Vector’s house.

   Dr. Nefario reveals that the shrink ray’s effects are temporary. Gru successfully saves the girls before the moon returns to its original shape and leaves Vector stranded.

   Introducing us to the fun and exciting world filled with evil supervillains, Despicable Me (2010) is full of amusing characters and attention-grabbing stories. While the villain plot is fun, the movie won many hearts with its emotional narrative beats.

2. Despicable Me 2

   Streaming On: Peacock Premium

   Directors: Chris Renaud, Pierre Coffin

   Writers: Cinco Paul, Ken Daurio

   Stars: Steve Carell, Kristen Wiig, Benjamin Bratt, Dana Gaier, Russell Brand, Steve Coogan, Miranda Cosgrove, Ken Jeong, Elise Fisher

   Genres: Animation, Adventure, Comedy, Crime, Family, Sci-Fi

   

   Continuing the evil events from the previous, Despicable Me 2 changes up the story beats heavily. In the movie, Gru, a former supervillain, joins hands with the Anti-Villan League to take down a villain trying to conquer the world.

   When a secret chemical goes missing, Gru, a former villain, is recruited by the Anti-Villan League. When Dr. Nefario and the minion start leaving to find new jobs, Gru accepts the job. Gru is paired up with Lucy and stationed in a mall.

   Gru instantly suspects El-Macho, who supposedly died. Gru and Lucy break into El-Macho’s but find no evidence. The three girls start seeing Lucy as their mother and suggest Gru get with her.

   When El-Macho’s son invites woo’s and Margot to a party, Gru’s suspicion renews. Later an emptied jar of the stolen chemical is found in a barbers shop in the mall, so the case is closed, and Lucy returns to Australia.

   Gru discovers that El-Macho has hired Dr. Nefario at the party and is changing the Minions into savage purple beasts using the stolen chemical. He plans on dominating the world with the minions and offers Gru to join, but Gru leaves.

   El Macho kidnaps Lucy, and when Gru comes to know. He decides to infiltrate El Macho’s lair. Dr. Nefario gives the girls an antidote for the minions and sends them to help Gru. When Gru, with the girls’ help, turns the minion back, El Macho turns himself into a monster. Gru successfully defeats El-Macho and tries to save Lucy.

   Visit: All Narnia Movies

   When Gru tries to untie Lucy from a rocket, it launches towards a volcano. Gru asks Lucy out for a date and she accepts as the two jump into the water. The movie ends with Gru and Lucy getting married.

   Following its predecessor’s footsteps, Despicable Me 2 (2013) was hugely successful. The movie ports over everything the first movie got right while adding new and tasteful twists that raise the bar for the upcoming sequels.

3. Minions

   Streaming On: Amazon Prime Video

   Directors: Pierre Coffin, Kyle Balda

   Writer: Brian Lynch

   Stars: Sandra Bullock, Jon Hamm, Michael Keaton, Steve Coogan, Jennifer Saunders, Tina Nelson, Steve Carell, Allison Janney, Hiroyuki Sanada, Pierre Coffin, Geoffrey Rush, Michael Beattie, Dave Rosenbaum

   Genres: Animation, Adventure, Comedy, Crime, Family, Sci-Fi

   

   Reverting to the stone age, Minions (2015) shows us the history and backstory of the minions in traditional minions fashion. In it, we follow the minions as they slowly evolve from the stone age into the current times as they look for and find their new master in Scarlet-Overkill, the first-ever female supervillain.

   Minions have existed since the dawn of time. When the Minions find no master to serve, they become sad, which urges 3 minions, Kevin, Stuart, and Bob, to go on a quest to find a new master.

   In New York, the trio stumbles upon an ad from the Vilan-Con. The next day at Villain-Con, they meet Scarlet-Overkill, the first-ever female supervillain, and she hires the minions. Scarlet tells the minions that she plans to steal the Imperial State Crown.

   The minions are found mid-heist, and a chase ensues. Bob pulls out the Sword in the Stone, becoming the new King. Angered that Bob stole her dream, Scarlet confronts him. Bob hands the throne to her, but she imprisons Bob, Stuart, and Bob.

   Visit: All The Hobbit And The Lord of The Rings Movies

   Both of them escape, hoping to apologize to Scarlet at her coronation. Bob mistakenly drops a chandelier there, which Scarlett thinks is an assassination attempt. She orders the trio to be killed. Scarlett captures Stuart and Bob and announces she will kill them if Kevin doesn’t surrender.

   Kevin sneaks into Scarlett’s castle and uses a machine to turn himself into a Giant. Kevin rescues his friends while Scarlett tries to escape using her rocket dress. Kevin grabs onto her, and a missile explodes, seemingly killing Scarlett and returning Kevin to his normal size.

   Alive, Scarlett tries to steal the crown again but is stopped by a young Gru, who steals the crown for himself. The Minions decide that Gru is their master and run after him.

   Introducing us to the back story of these cuteness-filled, yellow pill-shaped creatures, Minions is an entertaining comedic adventure movie. The skits play out well, and the jokes land perfectly, leaving the viewers tearing up from laughter.

4. Despicable Me 3

   Streaming On: Netflix

   Directors: Pierre Coffin, Kyle Balda, Eric Guillon

   Writers: Cinco Paul, Ken Daurio

   Stars: Steve Carell, Kristen Wiig, Nev Scharrel, Miranda Cosgrove, Trey Parker, Andy Nyman, Pierre Coffin, Jenny Slate, Dana Gaier, Steve Coogan, Julie Andrews, Adrian Ciscato

   Genres: Animation, Adventure, Comedy, Crime, Family, Sci-Fi

   

   Capitalizing on the success of the previous two movies, Despicable Me 3 was a huge success in theaters crossing $900 Million. In the movie, we follow a now unemployed Gru who discovers he has a mega-rich estranged twin brother.

   Gru and Lucy decide to stop Balthazar Bratt, a villainous child actor, from stealing the Dumont diamond. The duo saves the diamond, but Bratt escapes. Disappointed that they let Bratt escape, the anti-villain League new CEO Da Vinci dismisses Gru and Lucy.

   Gru and Lucy tell the kids about the dismissal, and the two decide to find a new job. Gru refuses to return to being a supervillain. The minions abandon him and end up in jail. Gru receives an invite to Freedonia to meet Dru, his long-lost twin brother.

   Gru is surprised to see Dru being immensely rich, to which Dru explains that their father was a supervillain and Dru became rich due to inheriting his technology. Dru wants to become a supervillain and wants Gru to mentor him, but Gru refuses to return to his roots.

   After the two bond, Gru and Dru steal the diamond back from Bratt, who successfully steals it. Gru secretly wants to return it to the AVL so that they hire him and Lucy back. After retrieving the diamond and being saved by Lucy, Gru reveals his true intentions. The two get in a fight, and Gru leaves Freedonia.

   Disguides as Lucy, Bratt kidnaps the girls and steals the diamond to power his huge robot. Gru instantly rescues the real Lucy and teams up with Dru to defeat Bratt. Rampaging in the city with his robot, Bratt tries to kill Gru, but Dru takes the damage, nearly dying. Lucy saves the kids, while Gru uses Bratt’s robot against him and defeats Bratt.

   Check: Pink Panther Movies

   Missing Gru, the minions reunite with Gru too. The movie ends with Gru and Lucy being reinstated in the AVL. Still wanting to be a villain, Dru steals Gru’s ship and flies away with most of the minions. Lucy and Gru give Dru a 5-minute head start before chasing him.

   Resuming the trickery of our favorite supervillain-turned-father, Despicable Me 3 takes viewers on a fun misadventure to Freedonia to meet Gru’s long-lost twin Dru. Jam-packed with fun tidbits, hidden easter eggs, and references to previous movies, Despicable Me 3 is an enjoyable experience.

5. Minions: The Rise of Gru

   Streaming On: Netflix

   Directors: Kyle Balda, Brad Ableson, Jonathan del Val

   Writers: Brian Lynch, Matthew Fogel

   Stars: Steve Carell, Pierre Coffin, Alan Arkin, Jean-Claude Van Damme, Michelle Yeoh, Julie Andrews, Danny Trejo, Taraji P. Henson, Steve Coogan, Lucy Lawless, Russell Brand, Dolph Lundgren, Will Arnett, Michael Beattie, Jimmy O. Yang

   Genres: Animation, Adventure, Comedy, Crime, Family, Sci-Fi

   

   Providing its viewers with Gru’s villain backstory, Minions: The Rise of Gru is an amusing mentor-mentee story. We follow a young Gru trying to find his footing as a supervillain in it. When a legendary Supervillain kidnaps Gru, he starts taking lessons from him.

   He is accompanied by his minions, an 11-year-old Gru who dreams of becoming a supervillain. Gru is excited to receive an invitation from the Vicious 6, a team of 6 supervillains. When Gru’s interview goes wrong, he steals a Chinese zodiac stone and gives it to Otto, a minion, for safekeeping.

   Gru returns to find that Otto traded that rock for a pet rock and fires the minions. Knuckles, a former Vicious 6 member, kidnaps Gru and asks for the rock in return for Gru. Kevin, Bob, and Stuart decide to rescue Gru.

   The trio tries to break in but is chased by goons. The goons are defeated by Mr. Chow, a Kung Fu teacher, who later teaches the trio Kung Fu. While held captive, Gru bonds with Knuckles, and he teaches Gru how to be a supervillain.

   Coming to know about Knuckles, the Vicious 6 destroy his house but fail to find him. The minion trio follows the Vicious secretly. Finding his home destroyed, Knuckles gives villainy up and releases Gru. Otto retrieves the rock and reunites with Gru, but the two get cornered by the Vicious 6, who the AVL confronts.

   The minion trio uses their Kung-Fu knowledge to defeat the Vilanous 6, while Otto and Knuckles save Gru. Knuckles gets heavily injured and is hospitalized. The Vilanous 6 are arrested, while Knuckles seemingly succumbs to his wounds.

   Gru apologizes and rehires the Minions. The movie ends with Knuckles waking up, saying he faked his death, and the two drove away.

   Check: All Cars Movies In Order

   Giving our beloved villain a complete backstory, Minions: The Rise of Gru is full of references to history and previous movies. The movie feels very story-heavy, gripping the user’s attention at the start and not letting go until the movie ends.

Despicable Me Movies in Chronological Order

In release order, the events of some movies take place before the event of others which can create confusion among some of the watchers, so here are all the Despicable Me movies in their Chronological order:

• Minions (2015)
• Minions: The Rise of Gru (2022)
• Despicable Me (2010)
• Despicable Me 2 (2013)
• Despicable Me 3 (2017)

Conclusion

So these were all the Despicable Me movies arranged in their release and chronological order. Starting in 2010, the Despicable Me has become one of the most beloved animated series, with minions becoming a widely adored mascot.

If you are looking for a franchise that can provide you with hours of gut-wrenching laughter while still bringing a tear to the eye with its emotional moments, the despicable me movies might be the right pick.

Despicable Me Movies According To IMDb Ratings

• Despicable Me (2010) – 7.6 By 563K Votes
• Despicable Me 2 (2013) – 7.3 By 412K Votes
• Minions: The Rise of Gru (2022) – 6.5 By 76K Votes 
• Despicable Me 3 (2017) – 6.3 By 144K Votes
• Minions (2015) – 6.4 By 248K Votes

Despicable Me Movies According To Box Office Collection

• Minions (2015) – $1.1 Billion
• Despicable Me 3 (2017) – $1.03 Billion
• Despicable Me 2 (2013) – $970 Million 
• Minions: The Rise of Gru (2022) – $937 Million 
• Despicable Me (2010) – $543 Million

FAQs