What if a super villain had to stare down his toughest challenge yet – parenthood?
The new animated film “Despicable Me,” due in theaters July 9, started with that kernel of a idea and blossomed into one of this summer‘s most intriguing new releases.
Just who is the Gru character in all those hip trailers?
The 3-D film features the voice of Steve Carell as Gru, a nasty fellow bent on stealing the moon – until he’s forced to care for a trio of tykes.
“We both have kids. We both relate to trying to function as an adult and super villain,” “Despicable Me” co-screenwriter Ken Daurio tells WWTW with a laugh.
Carell buries his standard speaking voice to play Gru, concocting a vaguely European accent to convey a mastermind brought to his knees by adult responsibilities.
The casting coup gave Daurio and his writing partner, Cinco Paul, an edge when it came time to polish the screenplay.
“We certainly didn’t write it thinking of that voice. But once he nailed it it opened the door for us,” says co-screenwriter Cinco Paul.
Today’s best animated features include a silly gag for the kids one moment, than a snarky pop culture reference aimed directly at their folks the next.
Paul says “Despicable Me” was concocted from a more natural place.
“We just write to make each other laugh. That’s our goal,” he says of his work with his tag-team partner, Daurio. “We don’t think we’ve ever tried to write something for kids.”
“I don’t want to write a movie that only my kids would like,” Daurio adds.
Daurio and Paul have been working together for years on projects like “Bubble Boy” and the forthcoming “Dinner for Schmucks.”
They work separately, then the hunker down and read each other‘s material.
“Sometimes we’re reading something I’ve written and Ken will have a new idea, or we try to improvise, Paul says.
“We usually split up the scenes with the goal of making each other laugh,” Daurio says.
Tomorrow: Daurio and Paul discuss “Despicable Me’s” unique marketing strategy and the impact working on a 3-D feature has on their screenplays.
(Photo: Top Right: Ken Daurio and Cinco Paul teamed up to write the animated 3-D film “Despicable Me” which hits theaters July 9. Bottom Left: Steve Carell provides the voice of Gru in the film./Universal Pictures)
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