Universal Pictures and Illumination Animation have become the kings of family-friendly blockbusters, between Despicable Me and spin-off Minions films and The Super Mario Bros. Movie — and after racking up billion-dollar hit after hit, they're apparently in the mood to talk a little trash about the competition.
To promote his upcoming Despicable Me 4, voice star Steve Carell appears in a promo tweaking the superhero genre in general, and Marvel's Marvel Cinematic Universe and Dwayne "The Rock" Johnson specifically.
The caption for the video spoofs The Rock's failed Black Adam gambit directly, teasing, "The hierarchy of power in the Illumination universe is about to change."
"By now you've probably heard of the Mega Minions, five minions with incredible power and zero responsibility," Carell begins, thumbing his nose at Spider-Man's mantra.
Carell continues, "But Despicable Me 4 is only the beginning. Presenting Illumination's Megaverse."
Behind him, a Marvel Studios-like timeline pops up, as he teases "50 interconnected Mega Minions stories shared across a variety of mediums on an irregular basis for the next 100 years."
Some of the obviously phony forthcoming titles scrolling behind him include 2076's Mega Minions: Vector Vortex and Mad Mega: Furry Road, coming in 2094.
There's also 2071's Mega Minions: The Write Off, an apparent jab at Warner Bros. Pictures' shelved Batgirl film.
"From their debut in Despicable Me 4, the Mega Minions are charting a course, from the big screen to the small screen ... from stages of Broadway to the ice rinks of Jacksonville, Florida," says Carell, who reminds fans that tickets for Despicable Me 4, which opens July 3, are now on sale.