Director Quentin Tarantino Has A Connection to the Minions

Quentin Tarantino is not just the oddball Oscar-winning filmmaker we know him to be. Believe it or not, director Quentin Tarantino is a father! The American filmmaker and his wife Danielle Pick just welcomed their first daughter and second child together over the 4th of July weekend. The couple wed in November 2019 and had their first child, a son named Leo, born in February 2020. Now that Leo is a little over two years old, Quentin Tarantino has started introducing his son to different shows and movies. The first film Leo and Quentin have ever watched together, in particular (and very true to the ‘Minion’ meme-crazed times we’re living in), Despicable Me 2.

Director Quentin Tarantino and Son Watch First Movie Together

Quentin Tarantino recently talked with Empire magazine about the first film he showed his son. Many fans of the filmmaker wondered what he would show his two-year-old as the first concrete movie in his life, a big deal for a director. In proper Tarantino form, he picked a film with a bit of violence (but made for kids), Despicable Me 2.

“[My son is] pretty young, so he’s only really seen one movie,…I thought I was hitting a ‘Minions’ cartoon, and I realize it’s ‘Despicable Me 2.’ And he seemed to be interested in the opening credits, so I go, ‘Okay, I guess we’re watching ‘Despicable Me 2.'”

Quentin Tarantino continued with his story,

“[Leo] gets up and he walks behind the couch, but he’s still watching the TV. We watched it for 20 minutes, until it was time for him to go to the park, and then the next day we watched another 15 minutes of it. And so, in the course of a week, in small bites, the first movie Leo ever watched was ‘Despicable Me 2.’”

It’s funny to hear that Quentin Tarantino has watched Despicable Me 2 and will probably end up watching Minions: The Rise of Gru. Who knows, in the future, Tarantino could direct his own live-action Minions film(which would be terrifying) but right up his alley.

The Minions Have Taken Over

The “Minions” craze has taken over in the past week with the new release of Minions: The Rise of Gru. This past weekend, the film dominated box office records while reaching its target audience (Families) and a slew of “Gentleminions.” According to CNBC, “The Minions also got a surprise boost at the box office from teenagers, who bought 15% of the movie’s tickets during its opening weekend.” This was in thanks to a recent TikTok trend dubbed the “Gentleminions,” an ironic meme-audience of young moviegoers (ranging from middle schoolers to mid-20-year olds) dressing up in formal attire such as fancy suits or minion costumes and showing up for the Despicable Me prequel.

The new ‘Minions’ movie also did drastically better at the box office than the Toy Story prequel Lightyear. Analysts wrote that the Minions was “simply more accessible to audiences.” The rest of the demographics showed that “Families accounted for 68% of “Minions: The Rise of Gru” ticket sales during its opening weekend, while adults without children accounted for 17% of tickets.”

What do you think about director Quentin Tarantino’s son and him watching Despicable Me 2 as their first movie together? Have you gone to see Minions: The Rise of Gru, and have you partaken in the ‘Minions’ meme trend of suiting up for the film? Let us know what you think in the comments below and be sure to share your opinion on The Nerd Stash Facebook page and @TheNerdStash on Twitter. We love to hear from you!