| Megamind | |
|---|---|
 Theatrical release poster | |
| Directed by | Tom McGrath |
| Written by |
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| Produced by |
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| Starring | |
| Edited by | Michael Andrews |
| Music by | |
Production companies | |
| Distributed by | Paramount Pictures[a] |
Release dates |
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Running time | 96 minutes[2] |
| Country | United States |
| Language | English |
| Budget | $130 million[3] |
| Box office | $321.9 million[3] |
Megamind is a 2010 American animatedsuperherocomedy film produced byDreamWorks Animation. Directed byTom McGrath, the film features the voices ofWill Ferrell,Tina Fey,Jonah Hill,David Cross andBrad Pitt. It tells the story of Megamind (Ferrell), a highly intelligentextraterrestrialsupervillain. After defeating his long-time nemesis Metro Man (Pitt), Megamind creates a new hero (Hill) to fight, but must act to save the city when his creation becomes evil.
Megamind premiered in Russia on October 28, 2010, and was released in the United States on November 5 byParamount Pictures.[a] It received generally positive reviews from critics and grossed $322 million against a $130 million budget. In the years following its release, the film gained acult following[4][5] via a variety ofInternet memes.[6]
The film later spawned afranchise, including a trio of video games and a short film,Megamind: The Button of Doom, which was included in the film's home media releases. A sequel,Megamind vs. the Doom Syndicate and a follow-up television series,Megamind Rules!, premiered onPeacock in 2024.
Supervillain Megamind and his polar opposite, superhero Metro Man, are extraterrestrials of different species who were both independently sent to Earth as infants before ablack hole destroyed their planets. Though both land in Metro City simultaneously, Metro Man is raised in a rich mansion and Megamind in a prison. At the school they attend, Metro Man is well-liked by his classmates, while Megamind is relentlessly bullied until he reaches his breaking point, setting off a rivalry between him and Metro Man.
Over the years, Megamind and his fish-like assistant and best friend Minion frequently and unsuccessfully battle Metro Man for control of the city. On the day of the new Metro Man Museum's grand opening, Megamind escapes prison, kidnaps news reporter Roxanne Ritchi, and lures Metro Man to an abandonedobservatory to rescue her. Megamind blasts him with a sun-powered death ray; Metro Man is unable to escape, having stated that thecopper-lined observatory roof weakens his powers. Overjoyed, Megamind takes over the city and executes a crime spree, but eventually becomes depressed and purposeless without Metro Man to oppose him.
Megamind decides to blow up the Metro Man Museum to forget the hero, but sees Roxanne is also there; as he runs, he dehydrates the museum's curator, Bernard, turning him into a small cube. Disguised as Bernard usinghologram technology, Megamind talks to Roxanne, whose remarks inspire him to use Metro Man's DNA to create a new superhero to fight. Megamind perfects the formula, but during a fight between him and Roxanne in his lair, he accidentally injects it into Hal Stewart, Roxanne's cameraman who is infatuated with her.
Disguising himself via hologram as Hal's "Space Dad", Megamind trains Hal to become a superhero. Hal, seeing this as a chance to win Roxanne's heart, accepts and takes on the name "Titan" (which he later misspells as "Tighten"). Megamind begins to date Roxanne while disguised as Bernard, and he and Minion have a falling out over Megamind's apparent lack of interest in committing further crimes. Roxanne rejects Tighten when he comes to court her and Tighten later witnesses her on a date with Megamind disguised as Bernard. After a heartbroken Tighten leaves, Megamind's disguise fails and Roxanne rejects him as well.
Megamind arranges to fight Tighten the next day, but soon learns that Tighten is now using his powers to conduct a crime spree. Tighten offers to ally with Megamind, who deliberately reveals his disguises and deceptions to goad Tighten into fighting. Angered, Tighten savagely beats Megamind in the fight. Realizing that Tighten is uninterested in justice and means to kill him, Megamind traps Tighten in a copper ball, but it fails when Tighten easily breaks out. Going to a reluctant Roxanne for help, she and Megamind arrive at Metro Man's old hideout, the old school house they attended. There, they discover that he is still alive, having faked his weakness and death after having become tired of protecting Metro City, followed by renaming himself "Music Man" to pursue his dream of becoming a musician. Megamind attempts to enlist his help against Tighten, but Music Man refuses; he instead encourages Megamind to become the city's new hero by telling him that a hero will always rise to defeat evil.
Dejected, Megamind willingly returns to prison. Tighten goes on a rampage and kidnaps Roxanne when she tries to reason with him. On a televised message, Tighten holds Roxanne hostage and demands that Megamind fight him. Regretting his actions of trying to kill Metro Man in the first place, a redeemed Megamind escapes prison with the help of Minion and reconciles with him. He goes to confront Tighten, using holographic disguises to appear as Metro Man, with Minion as Megamind, to frighten Tighten away and rescue Roxanne. However, Megamind's speech patterns reveal his identity and Tighten attacks Megamind, throwing him into thestratosphere. Dehydrating himself into a cube and landing safely in a fountain, Megamind re-hydrates next to Tighten and extracts the DNA from him, reverting him back to his former self. After Hal is arrested, Megamind rekindles his relationship with Roxanne, while the city celebrates Megamind as their new hero. The museum is rebuilt in Megamind's honor; a disguised Music Man additionally attends the grand re-opening.
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The film was written by Alan J. Schoolcraft and Brent Simons.[12] It was first titledMaster Mind, and thenOobermind.[13] It was originally suggested thatBen Stiller would be cast as Megamind,[14] and laterRobert Downey Jr.[15] butWill Ferrell was ultimately given the role, due to "scheduling conflicts" for Downey. Stiller was instead cast in a minor role as the curator named Bernard.[16][17]Lara Breay and Denise Nolan Cascino were the film's producers, and Stiller andStuart Cornfeld were the executive producers.[13]Justin Theroux andGuillermo del Toro worked as creative consultants on the film. Del Toro came on board three weeks before the end of production,[18] but went on to have a more substantial role in subsequentDreamWorks Animation films. The opening of the film, where Megamind is falling to his apparent death, was del Toro's idea.[19] Del Toro also convinced them to cut 7 minutes of finished animation from the movie.[20]
Megamind: Music from the Motion Picture is the soundtrack to the film, featuring a score composed byHans Zimmer andLorne Balfe, and released on November 2, 2010, byLakeshore Records.[citation needed]
Guns N' Roses' "Welcome to the Jungle" was also used in the scene where Megamind and Tighten have their last battle.[21][22]
Megamindpremiered on October 28, 2010, in Russia, and was theatrically released in the United States on November 5, 2010.[23] It was supposed to be released in Japan on March 12, 2011, but due to theearthquake and tsunami a day before, the Japanese release was cancelled until June 2018.[24][25]
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Megamind was promoted at the 2010San Diego Comic-Con, with Tom McGrath, Tina Fey, Jonah Hill, and Will Ferrell, who was dressed as Megamind.[26]
It was released on bothBlu-ray Disc andDVD on February 25, 2011, accompanied with an all-new short titledMegamind: The Button of Doom.[27]The Button of Doom also had its television premiere onNickelodeon, which was aired on February 26, 2011. It was the seventh-best-selling DVD of 2011 with over 3 million units sold.[28] The film made a total of $70.4 million in DVD and Blu-ray sales.[29] As of November 2012, 5.6 million home entertainment units were sold worldwide.[30]
The film was released on Blu-ray 3D in March 2011 exclusively as a part ofSamsung 3D Starter Kits,[31] and on September 11, 2011, exclusively atBest Buy stores.[32] In 2014, the film's distribution rights were purchased byDreamWorks Animation fromParamount Pictures and transferred to20th Century Fox;[33] the rights are now owned byUniversal Pictures, followingNBCUniversal's 2016 acquisition of DreamWorks Animation.
Megamind opened to $12.5 million on opening day, and earned $46 million over the three-day weekend, taking the No. 1 spot, averaging $11,668 from around 7,300 screens at 3,944 theaters.[34] The opening was a bit higher than fellow DreamWorks Animation filmHow to Train Your Dragon, which earned $43.7 million back in March 2010.[35] It was the fifth-highest opening for an animated feature in 2010. In its second weekend, it repeated at No. 1 and dropped 37% to $29.1 million for a $7,374 average from 3,949 theaters, and bringing its 10-day cumulative total to $88.8 million.[36] On its third weekend, it fell 45% to $16 million and finished second toHarry Potter and the Deathly Hallows – Part 1, averaging $4,237 from 3,779 theaters.[37] Over Thanksgiving weekend, it held well with just a 22% drop to $12.6 million and slid to third place behindHarry Potter and the Deathly Hallows – Part 1 andTangled (it earned $17.3 million over the five-day Thanksgiving period).[38] Following Thanksgiving, the film fell a sharp 61% in its fifth weekend to $4.9 million and finished in sixth place.[39]
The film closed in theaters on February 24, 2011 (a day before it was released on DVD and Blu-ray), earning $148.4 million in North America, and $173.5 million in other countries, for a worldwide total of $321.9 million.[3] It is the sixth-highest-grossing animated film from 2010 worldwide, behindToy Story 3 ($1.063 billion),Shrek Forever After ($753 million),Tangled ($591 million),Despicable Me ($543 million), andHow to Train Your Dragon ($494 million), the highest-grossing film worldwide in both Ferrell's (until 2014'sThe Lego Movie) and Fey's careers,[40][41] as well as the fifth-highest-grossing computer-animated superhero film, behindIncredibles 2,The Incredibles,Big Hero 6 andSpider-Man: Into the Spider-Verse.
OnRotten Tomatoes the film has an approval rating of 73% based on 180 reviews and an average rating of 6.7/10. The site's consensus states, "It regurgitates plot points from earlier animated efforts, and isn't quite as funny as it should be, but a top-shelf voice cast and strong visuals help makeMegamind a pleasant, if unspectacular, diversion."[42] OnMetacritic the film has aweighted average score of 63 out of 100 based on reviews from 33 critics, indicating "generally favorable" reviews.[43] Audiences polled byCinemaScore gave the film an average grade of "A−" on an A+ to F scale.[44]
Roger Ebert of theChicago Sun-Times gave the film three stars out of four, stating, "This set-up is bright and amusing, even if it does feel recycled from bits and pieces of such recent animated landmarks asThe Incredibles with its superpowers andDespicable Me with its villain."[45] Stephen Holden, ofThe New York Times, positively wrote in his review, "VisuallyMegamind is immaculately sleek and gracefully enhanced by 3-D."[46]Entertainment Weekly reviewerOwen Gleiberman graded the film a B+ and wrote, "...too goofy-surreal to pack a lot of emotional punch, but it's antically light on its feet, with 3-D images that have a lustrous, gizmo-mad sci-fi clarity."[47]Peter Travers ofRolling Stone commented, "What this raucous 3D animated fun house lacks in originality (think bastard child ofThe Incredibles andDespicable Me) it makes up for in visual and vocal wit."[48] Betsy Sharkey of theLos Angeles Times wrote, "Just as Megamind struggles to find his center, at times, so does the film."[49]
The main point of criticism was the film's perceived lack of originality.Michael Phillips of theChicago Tribune wrote: "You have seen all this before".[50] Justin Chang ofVariety said: "Though enlivened by some moderately clever twists on the superhero-movie template,Megamind never shakes off a feeling of been-there-spoofed-that."[51] Claudia Puig ofUSA Today asked: "Do we really needMegamind whenDespicable Me is around?".[52]
| Award | Category | Name | Result |
|---|---|---|---|
| 38th Annie Awards[53] | Animated Effects in an Animated Production | Krzysztof Rostek | Nominated |
| Character Animation in a Feature Production | Mark Donald | Nominated | |
| Anthony Hodgson | Nominated | ||
| Character Design in a Feature Production | Timothy Lamb | Nominated | |
| Storyboarding in a Feature Production | Catherine Yuh Rader | Nominated | |
| Writing in a Feature Production | Alan Schoolcraft, Brent Simons | Nominated | |
| Washington D.C. Area Film Critics Association Awards 2010[54] | Best Animated Film | Nominated | |
| 2011 Kids' Choice Awards[55] | Favorite Buttkicker | Will Ferrell | Nominated |
| The National Movie Awards[56] | Best Animated Movie | Nominated | |
| The Comedy Awards[57] | Best Animated Comedy Movie | Nominated |
Several video game tie-ins published byTHQ were released on November 2, 2010, to coincide with the film's release. AnXbox 360 andPlayStation 3 version is titledMegamind: Ultimate Showdown, while theWii version is titledMegamind: Mega Team Unite and thePlayStation Portable andNintendo DS versions are both titledMegamind: The Blue Defender.
Megamind: The Button of Doom is a 2011 animated short film released on DVD/Blu-ray withMegamind on February 25, 2011, directed by Simon J. Smith and starsWill Ferrell andDavid Cross with a story by the original writers of the film. Produced byDreamWorks, the short is set after the events of the film, showcasing Megamind's first day as Defender of Metro City.[58]
Following the events of the feature film, Megamind and Minion have assumed the challenging role of Protectors of Metro City. They begin by selling off their old gadgets from their former evil lair, as Megamind does not think heroes should use devices associated with evil. All of the items are sold, except for the Death Ray, which Megamind reluctantly keeps. As for the De-Gun, Megamind's former favorite weapon, it gets sold to a boy named Damien, who accidentally uses it to dehydrate his mother into a cube. After the auction is over, Megamind reveals a supersuit he created that copies all of Metro Man's powers and that he intends to wear and defend the city.
Minion finds a stray box with a button on it that he was also unable to sell during the auction. Not remembering what the button does, Megamind pushes it, activating anAI program based on his former evil personality that transfers itself into a giant robot called the Mega-Megamind. After scanning the supersuit, the robot thinks that Megamind is Metro Man and starts attacking him. Megamind fights the Mega-Megamind with his new powers, but is unfamiliar with their use, which causes him to crash-land in his lair. Megamind and Minion hide in the Invisible Car, and Megamind fears they will have to stay there forever, as he programmed the AI to never stop until Metro Man was dead. Minion suggests that Megamind should stop trying to be Metro Man and fight the robot in his own way. He also reveals he secretly kept their giant Spider-Bot, having grown fond of it as a pet.
Megamind thanks Minion and plans to lure the Mega-Megamind to the abandoned observatory in which the real Metro Man faked his death. Megamind, riding the Spider-Bot, succeeds in luring the Mega-Megamind to the spot, but Minion cannot activate the Death Ray because its main controls were smashed by Megamind's suit when he crash-landed. Megamind has Minion test the contents of a box of old secondary remotes to find the one for the Death Ray. Minion does so, and activates several features in the lair and on the Spider-Bot in the process, allowing the Mega-Megamind to capture the Spider-Bot. Finally finding the correct remote, Minion blasts the giant robot with the ray just as Megamind uses the robot's own arm-mounted crossbow to launch himself and the Spider-Bot to safety.
Megamind and Minion subsequently recover their old gadgets and re-purpose them for good. Upon finding Damien and the De-Gun, they discover he has dehydrated the parents of several other children as well as his own, and he and the children are throwing a party to celebrate their new freedom. Megamind reclaims the De-Gun, and re-hydrates the parents with a glass of water, much to the children's dismay. Later, Megamind and Minion see a signal in the sky (a spoof of theBat-Signal) and ride off in the Invisible Car as they are called to action.
The short film was released on DVD and Blu-ray withMegamind on February 25, 2011.[27]The Button of Doom also had its television premiere onNickelodeon, which was aired a day after its home media release on February 26, and onCartoon Network, which was aired on September 5, 2022.
On February 11, 2022, it was announced thatPeacock had ordered a CG animated series fromDreamWorks Animation Television serving as a follow up to the film, originally titledMegamind's Guide to Defending Your City. The series chronicles the new hero's quest to become a social mediainfluencer and a true superhero. The original writers of the film, Alan Schoolcraft and Brent Simons, are signed on as executive producers withCelebrity Deathmatch creatorEric Fogel. JD Ryznar was co-executive producer and story editor.[59]
On August 5, 2022, Simons confirmed that the show's writing was completed and production was moving forward.[60] In January 2023, it was revealed that the series would be released in 2024.[61] In February 2024, it was announced that a sequel film, titledMegamind vs. the Doom Syndicate, and the series, now titledMegamind Rules!, would be released on Peacock on March 1, 2024.[62]
Although DreamWorks Animation's Megamind had been listed on some overseas schedules as a March 12 opener in Japan, distributor Paramount said the film did not premier in the market on the weekend. Furthermore, said Andrew Cripps, president of Paramount Pictures Int'l., the 3D animation title --winding an overseas campaign begun in October of 2010 -- "will not release there."
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