Pierre Coffin, the French animator, director, and voice of the Minions, has addressed fan questions in a wide-ranging interview, revealing his thoughts on female Minions, the language of Minionese, and the possibility of an aging Minion storyline.
Female Minions and Reproduction
When asked about the possibility of a female Minion, Coffin said, 'I think a female Minion would be the beginning of the end. Universal would want to do it because they'd think it would please all the women out there. But I'm not convinced. If I were a woman, I'd think it was tokenistic.' He added that the team had played with the idea of an island of female Minions, but it never progressed. 'In my head, female Minions would look exactly the same as male ones. And in terms of how they breed: they don't. They just are.'
Minions Don't Age
On the topic of an 'old man Minion' story, Coffin stated, 'Minions don't age. I sometimes draw them like that for fun, but it just looks weird.' He confirmed that Minions live forever, answering 'Yes' to the question of their immortality.
Minionese Language
Coffin explained that Minionese has no linguistic structure, only melody. 'If a Minion asks a question, it has a melody of a question. If it's a joke, it has the rhythm of the joke. The secret of the Minionese language is to find the proper melody and add to that melody words to further understand what the sentence is about.' He admitted feeling 'a little bit of a fraud' because it's not a proper language, but rather 'gibberish' and 'tricks' to convey meaning. Coffin records audio for all territories except China, spending three weeks on voice work, with the first week correcting swear words and the next two localizing story points.
New Film 'Minions & Monsters'
The new film, 'Minions & Monsters,' is set decades before 'Minions: The Rise of Gru,' during the era when cinema became an industry. Coffin explained, 'From the moment Chris Meledandri suggested making a Minion movie in which the Minions were making a movie I thought it would be cool to have it happen in that era everyone forgets.' The film nods to silent film stars like Harold Lloyd, Buster Keaton, and Charlie Chaplin, and suggests that iconic movie scenes were influenced by the Minions.
Bananas and Personality
Coffin revealed he is not crazy about bananas, eating only a couple a month, but chose them for the Minions because of their practicality and color. He also discussed the distinct personalities of the Minions, noting that in the first two 'Despicable Me' movies they were a group, but starting with 'Minions,' characters like Kevin, Stuart, and Bob were given distinct traits: authority, aloofness, and naivety. Later films introduced Otto, a talkative Minion who might bring up Trump if left to speak. Coffin said, 'I do feel protective and defensive towards them because they're not critters. They're not soulless. They are individuals.'
Memes and Merchandise
Regarding the surreal memes featuring Minions, Coffin said, 'I think it's cool that people make the Minions their own. Sometimes, I find it really funny, sometimes very creepy. But even if it's irreverent, even if it goes beyond the scope of children, it's cool they're part of pop culture.' On merchandise, he noted that his house is 'swimming in Minions merch,' but he asked the studio to stop sending it because he got swamped. However, he kept one item: an 'evolved fart gun' that emits a banana-scented vapor. 'I love that. It's very cool.'
