THE WORLD'S 7TH HIGHEST grossing film in 2010 - taking in $540 "minion" in worldwide box-office - and also the 10th highest grossing animated film of all time! The first film from Universal's new family film unit Illumination Pictures, Despicable Me, opened in the US in July 2010 and became Universal's most successful film in three years, nearly doubling the company's own box-office gross predictions. July 2013 will see the next movie installment in the franchise.

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Making a full commitment to the Despicable Me franchise, Universal Pictures have now announced July 3, 2013, as the release date for the follow-up to the blockbuster 3D CGI feature. Chris Meledandri and his acclaimed filmmaking team at Illumination Entertainment will create an all-new animated adventure with the all-star voice cast returning to tell the next chapter in the life of everyone’s favorite (former?) super-villain Gro, his girls and his vast army of minions. Three short films featuring the secondary characters The Minions have also been produced: Banana, Home Makeover and Orientation Day.

The first Despicable Me feature introduced the story of Groo - the world's greatest villain, with a nefarious plan to steal the moon. Armed with his arsenal of shrink rays, freeze rays, and battle-ready vehicles for land and air, he vanquishes all who stand in his way. Until the day he encounters the immense will of three little orphaned girls - Margo, Edith and Agnes - who look at him and see something that no one else has ever seen: a potential Dad.

Said producer Chris Meledandri: "Everybody has a wicked side, whether they are 6 or 60, and yet so often storytelling draws a sharp line between good and evil. After years of taking my sons to the movies and having them leave the theatre with the villain as their favorite character, we decided to make a movie where the villain is the protagonist!"

Chris Meledandri was brought to Universal from Fox in 2007 to launch the new Illumination Entertainment banner, a major venture into the CGI family entertainment realm. Meledandri had previously produced success films such as Ice Age, Robots and Ice Age: The Meltdown. All Meledandri's films have had an audience composition with a broad range of ages, with more than 50% under the age of 25, and equally appealing to both male and female audiences.