With Gru’s latest adventure having achieved the No. 10 all-time worldwide chart spot, Illumination Entertainment’s Despicable Me film series (including Minions) has officially supplanted DreamWorks’ Shrek as the highest-grossing animated feature franchise worldwide. Despicable Me 3 has totted up $881.6 million since its June launch (it still has several market debuts to go), bringing the four film global total to $3.528 billion.
The five Shrek films (including Puss in Boots) previously held the top spot with $3.51B. Blue Sky’s Ice Age, also comprising five films, now mosies into the third place spot with $3.2B. The top 5 franchises also include Pixar’s Toy Story and DreamWorks’ Madagascar.
Three of the Despicable Me films are now in the Top 10 worldwide chart for animated features: DM 3 (No. 10), DM 2 (No. 7) and Minions (No. 2, behind Frozen). The key difference between the first film and the sequels is the China market. Despicable Me did not have a theatrical release in the country, but DM 2 made $53M and Minions set a local opening day record for animation. DM 3 has racked up nearly $150M in China, making it the second-highest-grossing animated film in the country ever.
Individual film box office to date:
Minions (2015) | No. 2
Total: $1,167,245,366 Domestic: $336,045,770 International: $831,199,596
Despicable Me 2 (2013) | No. 7
Total: $975,216,835 Domestic: $368,065,385 International: $607,151,450
Despicable Me 3 (2017) | No. 10
Total: $881,627,796 Domestic: $240,920,645 International: $640,707,151
Despicable Me (2010) | No. 37 All-Time Worldwide Animated Feature
Total: $543,495,033 Domestic: $251,513,985 International: $291,981,048
Sources: Deadline, By The Numbers
