Will Ferrell and Steve Carell make unlikely, AI-assisted cameos in the Jon Hamm-narrated Super Bowl LVIII trailer for Despicable Me 4.
Universal Pictures released the trailer Sunday, and it is set to run on CBS prior to Reba McEntire performing the National Anthem for the NFL’s big game taking place in Las Vegas. Filmmaker Chris Renaud’s animated movie hits theaters July 3, and focuses on the problems that ensue after Gru (Carell) and his family welcome Gru Jr. to their brood.
The new ad appears to tout the benefits of modern technology but features strange images supposedly generated by AI, including women exercising with extra limbs and a group of friends enjoying handfuls of spaghetti.
“Artificial intelligence is changing the world, showing us what we never thought possible, transforming the way we do business, and bringing family and friends closer together,” Hamm says in the spot.
One of the memorable images credited to AI shows Carell and Ferrell in a Renaissance-inspired pose and features Carell with surprisingly muscular legs. As can be expected, the mischievous Minions are behind the odd visuals.
Renaud and co-director Patrick Delage helmed Despicable Me 4 from a script by Mike White (Emmy-winning creator of The White Lotus) and Ken Daurio, who has a writing credit on every previous Despicable Me film. Chris Meledandri and Brett Hoffman serve as producers.
Despicable Me 4′s voice cast includes Carell, Ferrell, Kristen Wiig, Sofía Vergara, Miranda Cosgrove, Joey King, Stephen Colbert, Chloe Fineman, Pierre Coffin and Steve Coogan.
The Illumination-produced film follows 2017’s Despicable Me 3 and the 2022 spinoff feature, Minions: The Rise of Gru.
