Despicable Me is a 2010 American 3D computer-animated comedy film from Universal Pictures and Illumination Entertainment that was released on July 9, 2010 in the United States. It is Illumination Entertainment's first film. It was directed by Pierre Coffin and Chris Renaud, based on an original story by Sergio Pablos.
The film stars the voice of Steve Carell as Gru, a supervillain who adopts three girls (voiced by Miranda Cosgrove, Dana Gaier, and Elsie Fisher) from an orphanage; and the voice of Jason Segel as Vector, a rival of Gru who steals the Great Pyramid of Giza. When Gru learns of Vector's heist, he plans an even greater heist: to shrink and steal the Earth's moon.
The film was animated by the French animation studio Mac Guff, which was later acquired by Illumination Entertainment.
The film earned positive reviews from critics, and grossed over $543 million worldwide, against a budget of $69 million. It launched a franchise with a series of films, including a sequel in 2013, to be followed by a 2015 spin-off film featuring Gru's Minions as the main characters, and Despicable Me 3 in 2017.
