A few weeks back, a popular animated comedy was seen dominating the charts in Netflix US. Directed by Chris Renaud and Pierre Coffin as a sequel to the popular Despicable Me, Despicable Me 2 has a brilliant ensemble cast. However, the film missed out on one of the greatest actors in the history of cinema due to certain “creative differences”.
With his unlimited swagger and incredible acting chops, Al Pacino is a cinematic legend. Interestingly, he was supposed to be a part of this 2013 comedy film and was supposed to lend his voice to Eduardo Perez and El Macho.
In the film, Gru, voiced by Carell, is trying to adjust to stable family life with his three adorable daughters instead of playing a despicable supervillain. He is also trying to set up a jam business with the minions.
However, he is soon recruited by a group of officials to get back into the swing of things that abound in gadgets, supercars, madness and chaos with the minions while trying to save the world from the clutches of a nefarious madman aiming for world domination.
Pacino’s character was supposed to be a Mexican restaurant owner who retired from his previous job of being a supervillain named El Macho. However, when Pacino refused to do the role, Benjamin Bratt took over despite the former having recorded quite a few lines.
In an interview, Renaud had revealed that they had certain “creative differences”. Without explaining the matter, he acknowledged the “incredible contributions” made by the acclaimed actor.
Talking about the replacement, he said, “Benjamin Bratt was another actor we were considering before Al. So we don’t want an unhappy actor, and we want something that is well-realised on all sides. If you don’t see eye to eye, sometimes it’s easier to [part company] and move on from there.”
Bratt spoke about how challenging it was for him to mimic Pacino. After wasting a couple of days doing that, he decided to use the same as an inspiration and add his own twist to it. To quote Bratt, “No one can out-Al Pacino Al Pacino, and no one should dare try.”
With brilliant visuals and futuristic designs and an abundance of adorable yellow creatures, Despicable Me 2 was the highest-grossing film of 2013. It also featured the voices of Steve Carrell, Russell Brand, Benjamin Bratt, Miranda Cosgrove, Kristen Wigg and Ken Jeong.
Watch Despicable Me 2 on Netflix.
