In March 2011, Universal Studios Florida announced that Jimmy Neutron's Nicktoon Blast would be closing to make way for a new attraction. 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.[8][9]
Construction for the Despicable Me attraction at Universal Studios Florida began in mid-August 2011, with the closure and removal of the former Jimmy Neutron ride.[10] After a period of construction spanning several months, the attraction soft opened to the public on June 9, 2012.[11] 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.[12]
On March 11, 2013, Universal Studios Hollywood announced that they would open Despicable Me Minion Mayhem in 2014.[13] The announcement followed a series of rumours stating the park would replace the recently closed T2-3D: Battle Across Time attraction with a Despicable Me attraction.[14][15] A later announcement revealed the surrounding area would be themed to Super Silly Fun Land.[16]Despicable Me Minion Mayhem at Universal Studios Hollywood had its soft opening on March 20, 2014, and officially opened on April 12, 2014.[17] The area surrounding the ride is themed to Super Silly Fun Land, featuring a rotating ZamperlaAero Top Jet ride under the name of Silly Swirly, a water play area and a dry play area.[18] A giant statue of Stuart the Minion was erected on top of the ride's building in July 2015.
On June 20, 2016, Universal Studios Japan announced that they would open the Despicable Me: Minion Mayhem attraction, replacing the Back to the Future: The Ride attraction in 2017.[19] The previous attraction had closed on May 31, 2016. The ride film was reanimated in higher quality and with a higher aspect ratio through a fisheye lens to accommodate the IMAX dome screens from the previous ride. The most recent version of the ride opened in Universal Studios Japan on April 21, 2017 in the then-new Minion Park area. This ride boasts more content than the others, with a third pre-show video, a more immersive ride experience, and a wider field of view. In April 2019, Resorts World Sentosa announced that the Despicable Me: Minion Mayhem attraction, along with a few other attractions for Minion Land and the Mario-themed Super Nintendo World, would be brought to Universal Studios Singapore, replacing the Madagascar: A Crate Adventure attraction, along with the majority of the park's Madagascar area.[20] The ride, alongside Minion Land, was originally scheduled to open in 2022, but was delayed due to the COVID-19 pandemic. The previous ride and majority of the Madagascar area eventually closed on March 27, 2022,[21] with the Despicable Me: Minion Mayhem attraction and Minion Land set to open there in 2024.
In May 2019, Universal Parks announced that they have discontinued 3D at the Hollywood location, removing the need for 3D glasses and converting the ride film to 2D. The preshow had also been modified, removing all references to the 3D safety goggles. A few months later on July 18, 2019, Universal Parks announced that the Orlando version would follow suit and convert from 3-D to 2-D. In regards to the change, Universal has stated that they "consistently evaluate and refine our guest experiences", and "are excited for guests to experience Despicable Me: Minion Mayhem this way".[22]
Overview
The attraction at Universal Studios Florida is located in Soundstage 42 in the Minion Land on Illumination Ave 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 in the Production Central area.[2] The attraction at Universal Studios Hollywood is located on the former site of T2-3D: Battle Across Time on the Upper Lot, which was become part of a new area, Minion Land. The attraction at Universal Studios Japan is located on the former site of Back to the Future: The Ride in the San Francisco area in a new area called Minion Park.[14] The ride is also slated to open in 2024 at Universal Studios Singapore, replacing Madagascar: A Crate Adventure.
Ride experience
In a pre-show, Gru, Margo, Edith, and Agnes welcome the guests to their house and explains his newest scheme: turning human beings into Minions using a new device called the Minion Gun created by Doctor Nefario. Gru explains that there were a few snags in the initial Minionization test runs, and that all of the errors are eradicated. The audience is given a routine body scan to make sure there are not any “human germs” in the lab. The tests are interrupted by the three orphans, who try to give Gru a gift and offer their help in the Minion training.
Riders take their seats in the main show building. Kevin the Minion pulls a lever which activates the Minion Gun, transforming the riders into Minions. The orphans put the riders through various comical tests, with the seats moving in synchronization with the filmed action. As the laser wears off and the test ends, a mishap launches the riders into the bomb transportation sector. Gru questions what the riders are doing in the restricted area. As bombs begin to explode around them, Agnes loses her gift and the riders must chase after it. Once Agnes recovers her present by barely avoiding a huge spiked crusher, she starts floating into a huge oscillating fan. Gru arrives and saves Agnes. The riders, along with Gru and his daughters, plummet towards the ground and land safely on a crowd of Minions.
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 Rise of Gru", 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.
First pre-show room (Gru's living room)
First, the guests enter the room. Then the pre-show starts with Gru, Margo, Edith, and Agnes, who welcome the guests to their house through a remote camera, and explain to them that they will be trained as minions. Gru tells guests what to expect during their time as Minions. Afterwards, Gru orders the guests to proceed to his lab just as the camera battery runs out. Then a voice tells the guests safety instructions. Next, the doors open to Gru's laboratory with Gru explaining what to do while the guests enter the lab; the guests should stay in their row.
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 explains his newest scheme: turning human beings into Minions using a new device called the Minion Gun created by Doctor Nefario. Gru explains that there were a few snags in the initial Minionization test runs, and that all of the errors are eradicated, as far as the guests know. 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 is cut short due to a critical error: Gru becomes alarmed when the scan proves that some of the guests “have not showered in like a week”, and he remarks on how gross that is. Luckily for the audience, Gru is in a bit of a time crunch and once he reminds the audience to shower once arriving back at their hotel and to not go straight to the pool, he warns the rest of the audience that he will hit them with his fart gun if any of them are thinking of backing out of the process. A spotlight shines on the gun, which is mounted in the corner of the room. The Minions cry and beg that Gru doesn't hit them with the gun. However, at that moment, the girls show up, and Gru tells the audience to ignore them.
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”. Margo remarks that “there is no way he will shoot you with a Fart Gun”, however she is proven to be wrong as Gru activates the Fart Gun, causing it to spray out into the audience. Everyone holds their breath, but Edith states that it actually released a banana scent. Upon hearing this, the Minions go crazy and start banging on the windows, much to Gru's dismay. Afterwards, Agnes wants to give a present to Gru. He states that he would love to accept it, but he needs her to wait, explaining that he is really behind schedule and 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 guests: 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 their foster father has been reluctant for a while, not wanting to accept his daughters' willings. When Margo and Edith finally explain to Gru that the Minion training is “not like it's rocket science, or even fourth grade science” and that “a trained monkey can do it,” he agrees irate, calmly explaining to the audience that he will leave his daughters in charge of the training. He leaves the room and wishes the guests luck in their training, and at exactly the same time Agnes attempts to catch up with him to give him her anniversary gift of the girls’ adoption. Edith, however, tells her that Gru already left, which filled Agnes with sorrow, causing her to realize that Gru may have forgotten the anniversary of their adoption. Margo explains to her that he has not, and that also they have an important job to do: transforming the audience into Minions and training them 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. In Japan, the guests wait in their rows until they are directed to their individual safety briefing rooms by a lab assistant.
Safety video and final pre-show room (Japan only)
Once the riders are ushered into their holding rooms, the girls greet them and are amazed at how many people volunteered for “Minion Training”. Edith worriedly remarks “Woah. Someone should tell them what happened to the last bunch.” Margo tells her to stop as Gru tells the guests that being a minion is serious business, and if they make it through training in one piece, they can do something fun, like get ice cream or watch a movie. Then he explains that because there was a high level of losses with previous recruits, he is being forced to show them a safety video. He hands it over to the girls who explain the safety rules, including not to eat or drink, secure all loose articles, etc. The Minions demonstrate these rules in a humorous manner as they're explained. After the video ends, Margo pleads for the audience to abide by the given rules & Agnes tells the guests to enjoy their new life as Minions. A recap of the rules is displayed on the screen as the guests are ushered into the garage/boarding area.
Ride
With a loud bang, the ride vehicle springs to life, shooting forward before rising up a huge tunnel. Lights turn on to reveal a bunch of Minions cheering the guests on and waving to them as they rise. At the top, the vehicle arrives at a conveyor belt and is pushed forward towards a large set of doors. Once the doors open, riders see Gru's daughters on a hovercraft (Japanese version only; both American versions have the doors open, revealing Gru's daughters zap the riders).
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. The vehicle dives down a ramp alongside other Minions and launches over a ramp and straight into a corkscrew. As the vehicle slows down and returns to the upright position, Margo instructs the guests, stating that: “This is 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 as the sprayers are fired. The vehicle bounces off a trampoline and vaults onto a cactus, crushing a Minion in the process. Once they land, they are forced to dodge giant fly swatters, narrowly missing a few. The vehicle then dives through a laser maze simulation, only to get zapped at the end. A Minion gets zapped too and its skin puffs up, causing Agnes to scream “He's so fluffy!”
The laser wears off and the vehicle brakes in front of a crowd of Minions holding “Stop” signs. A huge boxing glove launches two Minions into a mattress, seemingly knocking them unconscious, and just when they think they're safe, another boxing glove launches into the car, sending two Minions flying alongside the vehicle as it is launched backwards, landing on a trapdoor that opens and sends the car down a pit, knocking over other Minions and coming to an abrupt 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 get distracted by it. They erratically reach for the banana, jumping into the vehicle to grab it which causes the Minion-chain to break apart and the riders to unintentionally plummet down a long hole to the bomb transportation sector, which is a restricted area; Gru appears on a screen, questioning what the riders are doing in the restricted area.
The cart brakes at another chasm where Margo states that “we’ve gotta get you out of here”, panicked, Suddenly, the worst happens: a bomb drops from a claw holder and explodes far below, starting a chain reaction which causes other bombs 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 plummeting into the abyss and dodging the bombs. The vehicle lands on a set of moving cogs, and the car narrowly misses a set of two buzzsaws. Agnes grabs the gift, but her celebration is cut short when a gust of wind shoots up from below, sending the gift and the vehicle flying into the air, hanging off a girder suspended in mid air. The gift rolls off the girder and falls down, with Agnes barely catching it. However, the vehicle lunges down into the conveyor belt below and causes multiple missiles to launch, with Kevin the Minion riding one into the sky. Gru arrives, attempting to catch the riders but a crowd of Minions send him rolling backwards on a missile. He falls into a vat of radioactive acid only to be nearly saved by grabbing onto the hovering vehicle that Margo, Edith and Agnes are riding. However, as Agnes is about to give her present to Gru, he gets unexpectedly knocked off the vehicle by a huge mallet unseen. He bounces off various objects before landing on a spring platform. The girls continue and fly out of harm's way, but as Gru remarks that he is okay, the platform activates and launches him upwards. As he falls back down, he gets hit by the mallet again and launched straight at the riders. The vehicle is pushed back past Kevin, who is still riding the rocket and screaming, and launches into the machine the girls are riding in. They get pushed off their vehicle and into another sector of the lab. Agnes grabs her gift as everything around them starts floating, making Margo 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 towards a set of crushers. When this happens, Margo warns her younger siblings to just hold on to the robot arm. A large tremor causes the girls to grab hold of the arm. This shocks Agnes and causes her to let go of her gift, sending it floating into the crushers above. She panics and frees herself from Margo's grip to retrieve the gift, much to Margo's concern. As she attempts to float off to recover the gift, the riders narrowly avoid a bomb and the crushers. However, once Agnes recovers her 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 a steel beam and saving Agnes. Seeing each other, Gru and Agnes hug when suddenly the crushers 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, plummet towards the ground and 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 it being “a little squashed and burnt”, Gru finds it “absolutely perfect”, and gives his daughters a hug, also gifting the trio with “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, through the party. The vehicle plummets down a rollercoaster and crashes into the car ahead of them. They dodge various rides and decorations, knocking over a Minion and launching into the stage. Once there, Gru congratulates the guests of being successful in their training. However, Kevin arrives, riding the stray rocket from earlier. It is launched at the Minion Gun, right next to Gru 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,” and he orders someone off-screen for the next troop. (This is where the ride ends in Orlando, Hollywood and Beijing as the doors from the start close.) The vehicle is pushed backwards and slowly lowers down through the same hole they came up through. Rainbow-colored mist is sprayed which covers the vehicle as it reaches the bottom and the ride ends. Once the vehicle's doors open, guests exit the lab.
Gift shop
In May 2012, the ride's gift shop Super Silly Stuff opened at Universal Studios Florida,[12] replacing the Nickstuff store. In 2015, The Back to the Future gift shop in Universal Studios Japan was replaced by Minion Mart, a Despicable Me 2-themed store.
Universal Studios Florida is a theme park located in Orlando, Florida, that opened on June 7, 1990. Owned and operated by NBCUniversal, it features numerous rides, attractions, and live shows that are primarily themed to movies, television, and other aspects of the entertainment industry. Universal Studios Florida was the first of two theme parks to open at Universal Orlando Resort, joined later by Islands of Adventure in 1999. In 2019, it ranked eleventh in the world – sixth in North America – for overall attendance among amusement parks with approximately 10.9 million visitors. A fourth park, Epic Universe, is expected in 2025. It is expected to be the largest Universal park in the United States.
Back to the Future: The Ride was a simulator ride located at several Universal Destinations & Experiences locations. The first installation opened on May 2, 1991, at the World Expo area of Universal Studios Florida in Orlando, Florida. A second installation opened on June 12, 1993, in the Hollywood Lot area of Universal Studios Hollywood in Universal City, California. A third installation opened on March 31, 2001, in the San Francisco area of Universal Studios Japan in Osaka, Japan. Based on the Back to the Future franchise, the ride is a first person adventure that takes place after the events depicted in Back to the Future Part III. Riders engage in a race through time in pursuit of Biff Tannen, who has stolen the DeLorean time machine.
The Amazing Adventures of Spider-Man is a 3D motion simulator and dark ride located at Universal Islands of Adventure in Orlando, Florida. Based on the Marvel Comics superhero Spider-Man, it was originally built for Islands of Adventure's grand opening in 1999. A second version of the attraction also existed at Universal Studios Japan from 2004 to 2024. The attraction has a hybrid configuration that combines motion vehicles with 3D projection and elaborate physical sets.
Jimmy Neutron's Nicktoon Blast was a simulator ride at Universal Studios Florida that replaced The Funtastic World of Hanna-Barbera based on the 2001 movie Jimmy Neutron: Boy Genius and it is set to take place after the events of the film. The story line revolved around Ooblar, from the Yolkian planet that has stolen Jimmy's newest rocket creation, the Mark IV. Jimmy, along with his best friend Carl and robot dog, Goddard, invite the audience to give chase in other rockets through the worlds and sound stages of the Nicktoons.
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The Simpsons Ride is a motion simulator ride located in the Springfield areas of both Universal Studios Florida and Universal Studios Hollywood. Based on the animated television series The Simpsons, the ride was announced in 2007 as a replacement for Back to the Future: The Ride at both parks. It first opened at Universal Studios Florida on May 15, 2008, and then a few days later at Universal Studios Hollywood on May 19, 2008. The producers of The Simpsons contributed to the design of the ride, which uses CGI animation, also worked on the ride's 2D animation. At the time of its opening, the ride featured state-of-the-art projection and hydraulic technology.
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Transformers: The Ride 3D is a 3D dark ride located at Universal Studios Singapore, Universal Studios Hollywood, Universal Studios Florida and Universal Studios Beijing. The ride, based on the Transformers film franchise, was designed by Universal Creative, Oceaneering International, and Industrial Light & Magic. Each installation is reported to have cost US$100 million. Universal Studios Singapore was the first to open the ride.
Illumination, formerly known as Illumination Entertainment, is an American animation studio founded by Chris Meledandri in 2007 and is a division of Universal Pictures, a division of Comcast through its wholly owned subsidiary NBCUniversal; Meledandri produces the films, while Universal finances and distributes them. The studio is best known for creating the Despicable Me, The Secret Life of Pets, and Sing franchises, as well as the adaptations of Dr. Seuss' books The Lorax and How the Grinch Stole Christmas!; and Nintendo video games, starting with The Super Mario Bros. Movie. The Minions, characters from the Despicable Me series, are the mascots of the studio.
Flight of the Hippogriff is a junior roller coaster at the Wizarding World of Harry Potter section of the many Universal theme parks. It is present at Universal Islands of Adventure in Universal Orlando Resort, Universal Studios Japan, Universal Studios Hollywood and Universal Studios Beijing. Designed by Universal Creative, the first installation opened at Islands of Adventure on June 18, 2010. The new ride was a redesign of an existing roller coaster known as Flying Unicorn, which the park closed in 2008 to begin its transformation. The design change was implemented to fit the new Harry Potter-themed area that was being constructed at the park. Flight of the Hippogriff is a mild alternative to the area's more extreme rides such as Harry Potter and the Forbidden Journey. Following a successful launch, identical versions of the roller coaster were installed at Universal Studios Japan and Universal Studios Hollywood over the next several years, with the Beijing version opening with the park in 2021.
Despicable Me 2 is a 2013 American animated comedy film produced by Illumination Entertainment and distributed by Universal Pictures. The sequel to Despicable Me (2010), it was directed by Chris Renaud and Pierre Coffin, produced by Chris Meledandri and Janet Healy, and written by the writing team of Cinco Paul and Ken Daurio. It stars the voices of Steve Carell, Kristen Wiig, Benjamin Bratt, Miranda Cosgrove, Russell Brand, and Ken Jeong. The film follows retired supervillain Gru as he is recruited by secret agent Lucy Wilde to investigate the theft of a powerful mutagen by El Macho, a supervillain who seeks to achieve world domination.
Despicable Me is an American media franchise created by Sergio Pablos and Cinco Paul and Ken Daurio. It centers on a former supervillain turned secret agent named Gru and his yellow-colored Minions. The franchise is produced by Illumination and distributed by its parent company Universal Pictures.
Universal Express Pass is a priority status boarding system used at various Universal Destinations & Experiences: Universal Orlando, Universal Studios Japan, Universal Studios Singapore, and Universal Studios Hollywood.
Despicable Me 3 is a 2017 American animated comedy film produced by Illumination and distributed by Universal Pictures. It is the sequel to Despicable Me 2 (2013), and the third main and fourth overall installment in the Despicable Me franchise. It was directed by Pierre Coffin and Kyle Balda, co-directed by production and character designer Eric Guillon, and produced by Chris Meledandri and Janet Healy, from a screenplay by the writing team of Cinco Paul and Ken Daurio. It stars the voices of Steve Carell, Kristen Wiig, Trey Parker, Coffin, Miranda Cosgrove, Steve Coogan, Jenny Slate, Dana Gaier, Nev Scharrel, and Julie Andrews. In the film, Gru teams up with his long-lost twin brother Dru to stop Balthazar Bratt, a former child actor of the 1980s, from destroying Hollywood after his show was canceled years ago.
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Dana Gaier is an American actress who voiced Edith in the Despicable Me franchise.
Despicable Me 4 is an upcoming American animated action comedy film produced by Illumination and distributed by Universal Pictures. It will serve as the sequel to Despicable Me 3 (2017), the fourth main installment, and the sixth installment overall in the Despicable Me franchise. The film is directed by Chris Renaud, co-directed by Patrick Delage, produced by Chris Meledandri and Brett Hoffman, and written by Mike White and Ken Daurio. It stars the voices of Steve Carell, Kristen Wiig, Will Ferrell, Joey King, Sofía Vergara, Miranda Cosgrove, Chloe Fineman, Stephen Colbert, and Steve Coogan.
↑ "Universal Studios Hollywood Announces New Details Regarding Plans for Highly Anticipated "Despicable Me Minion Mayhem" Attraction" (Press release). Universal Studios Hollywood. June 11, 2013.
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Universal Express Available
Single rider line available
Wheelchair accessible
Assistive listening available
Closed captioning available
