Despicable Me 4 Confirms Pharrell Williams Returning as Songwriter and Performer

CinemaCon is currently in full swing in Las Vegas, and the Universal panel unveiled some exciting trailers, news, and footage from highly-anticipated projects such as Wicked, Twisters, and more. One movie on the studio’s docket is Despicable Me 4, which will see the return of Steve Carrell as Gru. However, the lovable animated characters aren’t the only ones returning for the project. It was announced today that Pharrell Williams is returning as a songwriter and performer for the film. 

“Despicable Me 4 is joyous, surprising, and filled with characters that we love,” Illumination CEO Chris Meledandri said during the presentation. Back in 2013, Williams released “Happy” for Despicable Me 2, and it became a huge hit. It was the most successful song of 2014 and won the Grammy Award for Best Music Video.

What Is Despicable Me 4 About? 

You can read Illumination’s description of Despicable Me 4 here: “Following the 2022 summer blockbuster phenomenon of Illumination’s Minions: The Rise of Gru, which earned almost $1 billion worldwide, the biggest global animated franchise in history now begins a new chapter as Gru (Oscar® nominee Steve Carrell) and Lucy (Oscar® nominee Kristen Wiig) and their girls -Margo (Miranda Cosgrove), Edith (Dana Gaier) and Agnes (Madison Polan)-welcome a new member to the Gru family, Gru Jr., who is intent on tormenting his dad.

Gru faces a new nemesis in Maxime Le Mal (Emmy winner Will Ferrell) and his femme fatale girlfriend Valentina (Emmy nominee Sofia Vergara), and the family is forced to go on the run.

The film features fresh new characters voiced by Joey King (Bullet Train), Emmy winner Stephen Colbert (The Late Show with Stephen Colbert), and Chloe Fineman (Saturday Night Live). Pierre Coffin returns as the iconic voice of the Minions and Oscar® nominee Steve Coogan returns as Silas Ramsbottom.

Packed with non-stop action and filled with Illumination’s signature subversive humor, Despicable Me 4 is directed by a co-creator of the Minions, Oscar® nominee Chris Renaud (Despicable Me, The Secret Life of Pets), and is produced by Illumination’s visionary founder and CEO Chris Meledandri and by Brett Hoffman (executive producer, The Super Mario Bros. Movie and Minions: The Rise of Gru). The film is co-directed by Patrick Delage (animation director Sing 2 and The Secret Life of Pets 2), and the screenplay is by the Emmy-winning creator of White Lotus, Mike White, and the veteran writer of every Despicable Me film, Ken Daurio.”

Despicable Me 4 hits theaters on July 3rd.