Despicable Me 2

“Gadgets Galore” Featurette

If you have seen any kind of spy movie, then you know that an agent is nothing without their arsenal of weapons. The same applies for a villain-turned-hero like Gru in the Despicable Me franchise.

In Despicable Me 2, Gru is recruited by the Anti-Villain League (AVL) to help them track down the notorious evildoer, El Macho, and a serum he stole from a secret laboratory. To help him out on this very special mission, Agent Lucy Wilde is assigned to be Gru’s partner. Alongside her is a plethora of awesome gadgets at their disposal. Let us just say, these gadgets are nothing like cookie robots or a fart gun that Dr. Nefario made. If you’re curious to see how the team behind Despicable Me 2 came up with this creative weaponry, be sure to check out “Gadgets Galore” -  one of the many featurettes included in the “Extras” section.

Despicable Me 2 - Gadget Concept Art

As you’ll see in this Despicable Me 2 exclusive, Gru has always had a collection of gadgets with him, whether that be a freeze ray or his garage full of super-cool vehicles. However, the creative team had to think of completely different gizmos for the AVL.

Pierre Coffin (the director of Despicable Me 2) credits Eric Guillon (production designer) for thinking of most of the gadgets in the film. Coffin says “The great thing about how he designs them is that he has this young spirit. He wants those designs to become so true that he puts all his soul into it.” A lot of Guillon’s concept art was eventually translated on to the big screen. Everything from the AVL submarine to Lucy’s fire blaster came from the imagination of Guillon himself.

Despicable Me 2 - Yarrow Cheney

No matter if the gadget is used for evil or for good, the crew made sure that their features were unique and true to the series as a whole. Just as Yarrow Cheney (production designer) says, “One of the things we do with our gadgets in the Despicable Me world is that we try to build surprises into them.” Since the franchise is based in a rather cartoonish world, the team obviously has a lot of creative liberty when it comes to designing the movies’ arsenal. We highly doubt that there is an actual fart gun in our world. However, it’s that kind of gadgetry that fits perfectly into the outlandish environment created by Illumination. 

Further on in this featurette, the crew behind Despicable Me 2 explains how they wanted the gadgets being used by Lucy and the rest of the AVL to be a stark contrast from what we’ve seen Gru use as a villain. According to Yarrow Cheney, “Everything is sleek and high-tech.” When you’re watching Despicable Me 2, you can look at Lucy’s versatile car and see that it is a lot more sophisticated than Gru’s gas-guzzling car. The AVL’s gizmos are almost like the ones Q gives James Bond – except that they’re a lot more impractical and cartoony.

Throughout the entirety of the movie, Gru and Lucy try to one-up each other with the gadgets that they use. Lucy thinks that she has the superior arsenal whereas Gru thinks that his gadgets are the more useful. As you’re watching Despicable Me 2, you’ll probably decide which one of the gadgets is your favorite. Thanks to the creative team behind the movie, there are so many great devices to choose from.

One of the coolest gizmos that comes with buying Despicable Me 2 on 4k Ultra HD, DVD, Digital, or Blu-rayTM* is that you can watch even more behind-the-scenes features of the movie.

*Bonus features are only available at select digital retailers. Check the retailer for details.

 

Like this article? Read more about the making of Despicable Me 2 here: