Despicable Me: Minion Mayhem

Despicable Me: Minion Mayhem

The Despicable Me: Minion Mayhem show building at Universal Studios Florida
Universal Studios Florida
Area Production Central
Coordinates 28°28′30.98″N 81°28′5.17″W / 28.4752722°N 81.4681028°W / 28.4752722; -81.4681028
Status Operating
Soft opening date June 9, 2012
Opening date July 2, 2012
Replaced Jimmy Neutron's Nicktoon Blast (2003–2011)
Universal Studios Hollywood
Area Upper Lot
Status Operating
Soft opening date March 20, 2014
Opening date April 12, 2014
Replaced T2 3-D: Battle Across Time (1999–2012)
Universal Studios Japan
Area Minion Plaza
Status Under construction
Opening date 2017
Replaced Back to the Future: The Ride (2001-2016)
General statistics
Attraction type 4-D Motion Simulator[1]
Manufacturer Intamin
Designer Universal Creative
Illumination Entertainment
Reel FX
Duncan Studio
Theme Despicable Me
Riders per vehicle 8
Rows 2
Riders per row 4
Duration 8
Height restriction 40 in (102 cm)
Pre-show host Gru (Steve Carell)[2]
Ride hosts Margo (Miranda Cosgrove), Edith (Dana Gaier), Agnes (Elsie Fisher)[3]
Vehicle Names Minion Transformation Pods

Despicable Me: Minion Mayhem is a simulator ride attraction at Universal Studios Florida and Universal Studios Hollywood, with another currently under construction at Universal Studios Japan. The attraction is based on Universal Studios and Illumination Entertainment's 2010 animated film Despicable Me and its franchise and employs the use of 3-D HD digital animation. The attraction replaced Jimmy Neutron's Nicktoon Blast in Florida, Terminator 2 3D in Hollywood and Back To The Future: The Ride in Japan.

History

Some theming surrounding the ride at Universal Studios Florida

In March 2011, Universal Studios Florida announced that Jimmy Neutron's Nicktoon Blast would be closing to make way for a new attraction due to Nick no longer airing the show mentioned on the ride even though its spin-off Planet Sheen premiered at that time, SpongeBob SquarePants and The Fairly OddParents are still on the air and most of the Nicktoons represented on the former ride such as Rugrats and Hey Arnold! have moved to TeenNick where they have currently been on their own block. The ride began seasonal operations on April 1, 2011, before officially closing on August 18, 2011.[4][5] On April 14, 2011, Universal Orlando Resort began a teaser campaign on their Facebook page where weekly hints were released leading up to the announcement of their upcoming attraction.[6][7] On May 19, 2011, the attraction was officially announced at a live webcast at Universal Orlando Resort. Universal Parks & Resorts also announced a major refurbishment of The Amazing Adventures of Spider-Man at Islands of Adventure on the same day.[1][8]

Construction for the Despicable Me attraction at Universal Studios Florida began in mid-August 2011, with the removal the former Jimmy Neutron ride.[9] After a period of construction spanning several months, the attraction soft opened to the public on June 9, 2012.[10] On July 2, 2012, Despicable Me: Minion Mayhem officially opened to the public.[3] The ride's gift shop, Super Silly Stuff, had opened prior to the ride in May 2012.[11]

On March 11, 2013, Universal Studios Hollywood announced that they would open Despicable Me: Minion Mayhem in 2014.[12] The announcement followed a series of rumours stating the park would replace the recently closed T2 3-D: Battle Across Time attraction with a Despicable Me attraction.[13][14] A later announcement revealed the surrounding area would be themed to Super Silly Fun Land.[15] Despicable Me: Minion Mayhem at Universal Studios Hollywood had its soft opening on March 20, 2014, and officially opened on April 12, 2014.[16] The area surrounding the ride is themed to Super Silly Fun Land, featuring a rotating Zamperla Aero Top Jet ride, a water play area and a dry play area.[17]

On June 20, 2016, Universal Studios Japan announced that they will open the Despicable Me: Minion Mayhem attraction, replacing the Back to the Future: The Ride attraction in 2017.[18]

Overview

Universal Orlando Resort announced that the attraction is being designed by their Universal Creative company in association with Illumination Entertainment and Despicable Me film producer Chris Meledandri. The ride is a motion simulator and employs the use of high-definition 3-D Infitec projection systems, and features multiple characters from the film, including Gru, Margo, Edith, Agnes and the Minions.

The attraction at Universal Studios Florida is located in Soundstage 42 in the Production Central area. The soundstage previously housed The Funtastic World of Hanna-Barbera from 1990 until 2002 and Jimmy Neutron's Nicktoon Blast from 2003 until 2011.[2] The attraction at Universal Studios Hollywood is located on the former site of T2 3-D: Battle Across Time on the Upper Lot.[13]

Experience

Queue

When people are waiting in line for the ride, they get to learn about the recruitments of a Minion, the profiles of Gru, Dr. Nefario, Margo, Edith, Agnes and the Minions, filled with scenes from the first film and the Minion Mini Movies. The guests are also given a Minion-quiz, to let them test themselves to see if they are fully prepared to be a Minion. The Hollywood version has details to look more like Gru's house than the one in Florida. The answers in the quiz are always the last options except for one question where the answer is not listed as a choice.

First pre-show room (Gru's living room)

First, the guests enter the room and get Minion Goggles (3-D glasses). Then the pre-show starts when Gru who welcomes the guests to his house and explains them that they will be trained as minions, but he warns them that "danger lurks at every turn". Just as he was about to begin the tour, Gru's youngest daughter, Agnes interrupts and appears on-screen. Then, Margo and Edith, Gru's other daughters, appear on-screen: the brown-eyed oldest, Margo, appears right next to Gru, asking what he is doing, but Gru explains he is trying to do something. Edith makes weird faces in front of the camera. Then Agnes appears in front of the camera along with Kyle: the former asks to the audience: "Who's the cutest doggie in the world?", while kissing the latter on the camera at the same time, leaving a smudge, then continues chasing him. Gru, however, attempts to maintain his concentration, but loses it when he sees Margo cleaning Kyle's smudge. All of a sudden, Edith appears with some sock puppet in front of the camera, mimicking the voice of an evil clown. During Edith's imitation, Agnes chases Kyle. Gru, on the other hand start to grow suspicious of Edith's behaviour. Once Gru realizes that Edith and Agnes are going way too far, he orders them to listen up and just let him explain. Once Edith and Agnes start to heed Gru's orders, Edith explains that she, along with her siblings, are "just trying to keep things interesting". Gru forces the girls to keep themselves quiet and stand still. He introduces his daughters to the audience who, in response, greet the audience. After the introduction for Gru's daughters, Gru forces the public to take a three-hour written exam and that they will see none of the park, but Margo explains him not to do that, since they haven't planned it. Gru, who did not think it's a good idea, unwillingly accepts and begins by explaining about Minion Goggles, the latest invention created by his sidekick, Dr. Nefario. He tested them on Gru's very own Minions to see how they work, and what the guests should be doing during the demonstration. Gru explains to the audience that they have Nefario's guarantee. This means that the Minion Goggles will last five times longer than the person wearing them. He also explains the safety violations for the goggles, like not putting them on until you've got the permission to do that, also that it is prohibited to use the Minion Goggles to hold in anything that looks like food to us. Afterwards, Gru orders the guests to proceed to his lab and also forces them to heed his warns. Margo, Gru's oldest daughter, on the other hand, orders the guests to have fun, but Gru doesn't even smile, so the girls try to spruce him up: Edith by playing with the sock puppet, imitating the voice of an evil clown at the same time, Agnes by saying: "Come on! Smile, Gru!". However, Gru responds in a bored tone with: "I hate smiling". Then a voice tells the guests safety introductions. Next, the doors open to Gru's laboratory with Gru saying what to do while walking in the room; the guests should stay in their row and not put on their Minion Goggles yet until they're told to do so.

Second pre-show room (Gru's laboratory)

In this pre-show room, just before the ride, Gru, along with some Minions, enter the room and explains the public are there for a reason: henching for the world's #1 supervillain. Gru wants to take time to interview the new recruits one at a time, but explains he is working on something really big today, so he does the interviewing very fast. As Gru is about to begin, however, a Minion, holding a blueprint, interrupts him. Gru excuses the audience to wait a moment so he can read the blueprint the Minion is holding. Gru finds the blueprint good and orders the Minion to ask Doctor Nefario, his assistant, for more dynamite. When the Minion leaves, only to involve an argument with another throwing a piece of wadded paper at him, Gru explains his plan of turning everyday ordinary human beings into Minions using a kind of device, called the Minion Gun, created by Doctor Nefario. He tested out on some human beings to see how good it functions, transforming them into Minions of all different shapes and sizes. Next, the whole audience is given a routine body scan to make sure there are not any "human germs" in the lab by using high-density lasers. However, the scan ends up with a warning: Gru gets disappointed when that some of the guests "have not showered in like a week". This causes the Minions to make fun of the public, but they stop laughing and are forced to get back to work when Gru glares at them. Lucky for the audience, Gru is in a bit of a time crunch and warns for the rest of the audience that he will hit them with his "Pistola de pedo" (Spanish for "fart gun") if any are thinking on backing out. Next, Gru asks: "So what will it be? Minions... or farts?". However, at the same moment, Edith interrupts and imitates her father. Gru, realizing his daughters have showed up, explains to the audience to ignore them. All of a sudden, some of the Minions appear holding party supplies, but are forced to retreat when Gru explains: "Not now!", and shoos them away. Agnes and Margo start to explain to the audience that they should not be scared of Gru by calling him "just a big, bald teddy bear". The confident Gru, however, wants to prove it to his daughters by pressing a button on his computer, which causes the fart gun to go off. Because of the stench, Edith and Agnes are forced to cover their mouths, Margo and the Minions to hold their breaths. They stop doing it when Edith sniffs the room, then picks up the scent, explaining it "smells like bananas". This causes the Minions to start going mad and some lick on window. When this happens, the girls act natural. Gru, on the other hand, gets annoyed with the unexpected antics of his henchmen. Afterwards, Agnes wants to give a present to Gru. He loves to accept it, but tells her to wait, explaining that he is going to be really behind schedule; also, he has to train the public who are on the verge of becoming Minions. Margo eagerly asks Gru if the trio can assist him by training the crowd: Gru thinks for a moment, but responds with: "I do not think so." However, as Edith starts begging, Gru says that the training is very technical. It all becomes clear when Edith explains that her foster father has been reluctant for a while, not wanting to accept his daughters' willings. When Margo and Edith finally explain to Gru, who is busy shooing the Minions holding fire-works away, that the Minion training is "not like it's rocket science, or even fourth grade science" and that "a training monkey can do it," he agrees irate, calmly explaining to the audience that he will leave his daughters in charge of the training. Once Edith hears this, she explains to the guests that they "are so doomed." Gru, however, orders the public to not listen to her, despite him saying that Edith might be right for once. He leaves the room and wishes the guests good luck, at exactly the same time Agnes attempts to catch up with him to give him her anniversary gift of the girls adoption. Edith, however, explains to her younger sibling that Gru already left, which made Agnes filled with sorrow, realizing that Gru may have forgotten the anniversary of their adoption. Margo says to her that he will not, and that also they have an important job to do: training the audience into Minions for Gru's bidding. Margo's determination to initiate the training causes Edith to be pumped up and say: "Let's do this!". After that, the doors to the ride are opened, the public is let through and Margo instructs to the audience to not put on their minion goggles until they are told to do so by a lab assistant.

Ride

Despicable Me: Minion Mayhem at Universal Studios Hollywood

Once the ride begins, riders see Gru's daughters on a hovercraft. Once Edith orders Kevin the Minion to zap the riders, he pulls a lever which activates the Minion Gun, transforming the riders into Minions. Next, the riders get pushed down a long tube to training by the girls. Margo welcomes the guests to the Minion Training Grounds. As the riders slide down and avoid the water sprayers, Margo instructs the guests: "This where we test your "strength, speed and ability to not die". As the riders attempt to dodge the water sprayers, mist is sprayed on the audience from the ceiling. The audience is also forced to dodge deadly security lasers, a huge cactus, and fly swatters along the way. Once some Minions, holding "Stop" signs, force them to stop running, two Minions are being punched towards a mattress by a huge boxing glove, then the riders are being punched down by another, among with two Minions, and unexpectedly stop at a chasm. This is where the girls put the recruits' problem solving and teamwork skills to the test; the latter are forced to create a huge, human hand-like Minion-chain to get across the other side. However, once Edith uses a huge banana as bait, the Minions suddenly get distracted by it, causing the Minion-chain to break apart and the riders to accidentally fall down a long hole to the bomb transportation sector, which is a restricted area; Gru also warns that it might be dangerous. When the girls are helping us to get out of the sector, the worst happens: bombs start to explode in the bomb transportation room; when the girls get startled by the explosions, Agnes loses her gift and the guests attempt to retrieve it by dodging the bombs, also the huge machinery on the verge of crushing the riders and the girls into pieces, like huge razor sharp blades, with Agnes barely catching it. However, when the two Minions that the guests used to follow start to fall down, Gru arrives, attempting to catch them, but he falls down among with them, only to be nearly saved by grabbing hold to the hovering vehicle that Margo, Edith and Agnes are riding. However, as Agnes is about to give her present to Gru, her adoptive father, he gets unexpectedly knocked off the vehicle by a huge mallet unseen. The girls continue, but Gru gets hit straight at the riders. The riders then suddenly end up, among with Gru's daughters, get pushed off their vehicle, in another sector. Once off the conveyor belt, Margo, Edith and Agnes are starting to float, making the first realize that they are in the anti-gravity recycling room. To make matters worse, a huge robot arm rises from under and pushes the girls up, ending themselves up being surrounded by claws and other hazards, but they hold on to it. When this happens, Margo warns her younger siblings to just remain hold to the robot arm. However, one of the crushers nearby startles Gru's daughters, causing Agnes to lose her present. Seeing her present floating away, Agnes lets go of Margo's hand, much to the latter's concern, and attempts to float off to recover the gift, narrowly avoiding a bomb. However, once Agnes recovers her one-year present by barely avoiding a huge spiked crusher, she starts floating into a huge oscillating fan, when, all of a sudden, Gru arrives, blocking the crushers with an steel beam, then saves Agnes. Seeing each other, Gru and Agnes give themselves a hug when suddenly the smashers start moving again, leaving Gru no choice but to summon all of his strength to stop the huge crusher just in time, saving all of them, including himself, from being smashed. Because of Gru's strength and pressure that he used to both save Agnes and stop the huge crusher, the anti-gravity recycling room's power goes down, and the riders, along with Gru and his daughters, land safely on a crowd of Minions. Once both the Gru residence and the guests land safely on the Minions, Gru opens Agnes' present, revealing a doll replica of himself. Despite that Agnes says "it's a little squashed and burnt", Gru finds it "absolutely perfect", and gives his daughters a hug, also giving the trio "a little something": an amusement park-like anniversary party, asking if they really thought he would forget the most important day of his life, the day he adopted his girls. Once the huge doors open to the party, the riders follow the Gru residence, now riding on a hovering vehicle, avoiding the party decorations all the way to the stage. Once there, Gru congratulates us of being successful in their training. However, a stray rocket is fired at the Minion Gun, right next to Gru. He protects his daughters, however, the gun breaks and goes off on the riders, causing the effects to be reversed, transforming the guests into humans again. Once this happens, Gru gets disappointed, realizing the riders are "human again," orders someone off-screen for the next troop.

Post-show

After the ride, the door opens to a dance party with the public dancing to "Boogie Fever," along with a costumed Minion.[2]

Gift shop

In May 2012, the ride's gift shop Super Silly Stuff opened at Universal Studios Florida,[11] replacing the Nickstuff store. The Hollywood version opened in March 2014 replacing T2 Gear & Supply Co. The store sells Despicable Me-related merchandise. The store is themed to the theme park Gru, Margo, Edith, and Agnes visited in the first Despicable Me film, Super Silly Fun Land.

Special effects

As well as the entire ride being a motion simulator, other physical effects are used. Mist is sprayed from the ceiling on to the audience during key points of the show, wind blows in riders' faces throughout the ride, and light effects flash.

Voice cast

Accolades

List of awards and nominations
Award Category Winner/Nominee
Annie Awards[19] Best Animated Special Production Won
Visual Effect Society Awards[20] Outstanding Visual Effects in a Special Venue Project

See also

References

  1. 1 2 MacDonald, Brady (May 19, 2011). "Universal Studios Orlando plans 'Despicable Me' attraction and digital upgrade to Spider-Man ride in 2012". Los Angeles Times. Retrieved May 20, 2011.
  2. 1 2 3 Bevil, Dewayne (July 5, 2012). "Details distinguish Universal Studios' Despicable Me ride". Orlando Sentinel. Tribune Company. Retrieved March 13, 2013.
  3. 1 2 Bevil, Dewayne (July 2, 2012). "Despicable Me Minion Mayhem ride opens at Universal Studios". Orlando Sentinel. Tribune Company. Retrieved March 13, 2013.
  4. ↑ Garcia, Jason (March 14, 2011). "Universal to replace Jimmy Neutron ride with new attraction". Orlando Sentinel. Retrieved May 21, 2011.
  5. ↑ Bevil, Dewayne (August 11, 2011). "Universal Studios shuts doors on Jimmy Neutron for good". Orlando Sentinel. Retrieved March 13, 2013.
  6. ↑ Universal Orlando Resort (April 14, 2011). "Hey fans! We know...". Facebook. Retrieved May 6, 2011.
  7. ↑ Orlando Business Journal – by Richard Bilbao (April 21, 2011). "What's with the banana? | Orlando Business Journal". Bizjournals.com. Retrieved May 6, 2011.
  8. ↑ "Blockbuster 3-D-CGI Feature "Despicable Me" to Become Attraction Experience at Universal Orlando". Press Release. Universal Orlando Resort. May 19, 2011. Retrieved May 21, 2011.
  9. ↑ Bevil, Dewayne (August 29, 2011). "Picture it: 'Despicable Me' construction at Universal Studios". Orlando Sentinel. Retrieved September 8, 2011.
  10. ↑ Bevil, Dewayne (June 13, 2013). "Universal Studios: Grand opening date set for Despicable Me Minion Mayhem". Orlando Sentinel. Tribune Company. Retrieved March 13, 2013.
  11. 1 2 Bevil, Dewayne (May 30, 2012). "Pictures: Universal Studios introduces SpongeBob StorePants and Super Silly Stuff (plus movement at Jaws)". Orlando Sentinel. Retrieved March 13, 2013.
  12. ↑ Painter, Alysia Gray (March 12, 2013). "Universal Studios Announces "Despicable Me" Attraction". NBC Southern California. NBCUniversal. Retrieved March 13, 2013.
  13. 1 2 Martin, Hugo (February 20, 2013). "'Despicable Me' attraction coming to Universal Studios Hollywood". Los Angeles Times. Tribune Company. Retrieved March 13, 2013.
  14. ↑ Garcia, Jason; Clarke, Sara K. (February 17, 2013). "Universal to duplicate Despicable Me ride". Orlando Sentinel. Tribune Company. Retrieved March 13, 2013.
  15. ↑ "Universal Studios Hollywood Announces New Details Regarding Plans for Highly Anticipated "Despicable Me Minion Mayhem" Attraction" (Press release). Universal Studios Hollywood. 11 June 2013.
  16. ↑ Universal Studios Hollywood (2014-04-11). "Universal Studios Hollywood Premieres "Despicable Me Minion Mayhem," an Immersive 3D Ultra-HD Digital Animation Adventure, and "Super Silly Fun Land," an Imaginative and Interactive Play Zone" (Press release). PR Newswire. Retrieved 2015-02-17.
  17. ↑ "Minions Mayhem at Universal Studios Hollywood". Park World Magazine: 16. February 2014.
  18. ↑ http://behindthethrills.com/2016/06/minion-mayhem-to-replace-back-to-the-future-at-universal-studios-japan-in-2017/
  19. ↑ Beck, Jerry (February 2, 2013). "Annie Award Winners". Cartoon Brew. Retrieved August 9, 2014.
  20. ↑ Giardina, Carolyn (February 5, 2013). "VES Awards 2013: 'Life of Pi' Wins Top Prize". The Hollywood Reporter. Retrieved August 9, 2014.
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