Production Notes & Screen Credits - SYE Publicity

their young son. Armed with wild clothes, disposable
cameras and bad fanny packs, the tourists are in for a
more exciting trip than they could ever dream of when
they discover someone has stolen the Great Pyramid.
The Carnival Barker (also voiced by Jack
McBrayer) at Super Silly Fun Land has no
intention of allowing Margo, Edith or Agnes
out of the park with a prized stuffed animal. Calling out
taunts like “Someone’s got a frowny face!” will only
motivate Gru to pull out the big guns to win Agnes her
beloved unicorn.
A cross between a bulldog and a piranha
with the attitude to match, Kyle is Gru’s
guard dog. The recipient of many unwelcome
hugs by Agnes, Kyle isn’t sure whether he
wants to swallow the little girls whole, or just cuddle
up next to them.
Populating
Despicable Me:
Casting Comic Talent
When bringing together the cast for Illumination’s
first animated feature, the directors and producers of
Despicable Me were adamant about selecting actors
who could not only bring out the humor of their
voices, but also channel
their comic physicality to
inspire the many animators
who worked on the project.
Cohen explains: “The way
we approached the casting
is that we wanted to find
the absolute best improvisational
comedians out
there. They brought a
level of spontaneity and
naturalistic performances
to the film.”
To choose the comedy’s primary super-villain, a
character who is at his wit’s end trying to become the best
in his profession, the team members had to look no
further than a former collaborator. Performer Steve
Carell is known to millions of fans through his roles on
television’s The Office and popular films including The
40-Year-Old Virgin, Get Smart and Date Night, but it was
his voice that most interested the filmmakers. He first
worked with Meledandri on Horton Hears a Who!, in
which he vocalized the role of the Mayor of Who-ville.
“Steve has great pathos in his voice, but his voice
also carries his comedy effectively,” says Meledandri.
“Working with him is unique because he comes to the
process as an actor, an improviser and a writer. It’s rare
that Steve will not give you a version of the scene that
everybody agrees has just taken that comic or dramatic
sequence and made it significantly better. The process
of working with him is one of discovery. You never
quite know where he’s going, and yet he always takes
you to a place that’s a more elevated level than where
you started.”
When the team sat down with Carell to discuss his
ideas about a vocal approach to Gru, Carell made the
observation that great villains in movies have very
memorable voices, and he didn’t want the audience to
pinpoint the accent. Explains Meledandri: “Carell
started to play with different vocals that involved
Bank of Evil manager Mr. Perkins (WILL ARNETT) taunts Gru.
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