Sacre-banana-bleu, the Minions may be French! Whether you know the Minions from their roles in theDespicable Mefranchise or from your elder relative’s Facebook memes, the little yellow blobs created by Illumination are some of the most recognizable animated characters in modern history. New Minions lore has dropped because of a very unlikely source: The 2024Olympicsin Paris, France.
Gru’s loyal but destructive henchmen were featured in the commercials leading up to the 2024 Paris Olympics, but seeing them featured in the opening ceremony and creating chaos in Paris has caused some to question whether or not the minions are French by origin. Several on Twitter (X) reacted to the Minions' appearance at the 2024 Olympics and were openly processing their reactions to the new piece of Minions’s lore.
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The Minions Have French Roots in Their Unique Language
Despicable Me 4
Perhaps the Minions' most definitive characteristic is their language. Their unique language has traces of French and other languages, such as Korean, Italian, and Spanish. In 2022,Day Translationshad a breakdown of the language influences for the Minion language, specifically touching on the abundance of food-related words. Bananas and potatoes often appear in Minion speak. The Minions were also heard saying “poulet tiki masala,” which is the French translation of “Indian chicken dish,” in the trailer forDespicable Me 2, in which they sang a cover of “Barbara Ann” by The Beach Boys.
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The Minions star inDespicable Me 4,the latest in their lucrative film franchise. Thus far, the film, which seesthe little yellow creatures gain superpowers, has grossed over $630 million domestically, and theDespicable Me/Minionsfranchise has generated over $5 billion worldwide. Appearances like the one they had at the Olympics continue to keep the Minions, French or otherwise, in the public eye.
The Olympics and the first threeDespicable Memovies are currently broadcast onPeacock.
