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 Back in 2010, Gru, everyone's favourite big-hearted anti-hero memorably voiced by Steve Carell, burst onto the scene in Despicable Me.

Chris Renaud and Pierre Coffin's animated smash hit found the perfect balance of adult humour and slapstick physical comedy to appeal to all ages. It reinvented the down-on-his-luck criminal trope for a family-friendly audience via the mischievous antics of the Minions and the emotional depth of Gru's evolving storyline.

After the staggering success of the first film, which made $543 million on a $69 million budget, the franchise has evolved into a multi-billion-dollar empire.

Fourteen years later with five films – three Despicable Me movies and two Minion movies – in the canon, Renaud returns as director of the sixth movie, after both Despicable Me 3 and Minions grossed more than $1 billion at the worldwide box office.

Despicable Me 4 follows on from the last instalment in 2017, as Gru and Lucy (Kristen Wiig) face a whole new set of challenges. The married couple now have to juggle their careers at the Anti-Villain League with their three daughters (Miranda Cosgrove, Dana Gaier, Madison Polan) and their new-born son, Gru Jr. Yet, their domestic lives are thrown into disarray when supervillain Maxime Le Mal (Will Ferrell) escapes from prison and is set on revenge against his antagonist, Gru. The stakes have never been higher for the former supervillain to protect his family, whatever the cost.

Stuffed with spy gadgets, witty one-liners and more light-hearted action, Despicable Me 4 is an aged-up new addition to the franchise (co-written by The White Lotus creator Mike White) that continues to develop the Gru-centric storyline at the heart of these films.

Joey King as Poppy, a wannabe supervillain, and Sofia Vergara as Valentina, Le Mal's femme fatale girlfriend, are new to the series, while Steve Coogan returns to voice the former director of the Anti-Villain League, Silas Ramsbottom.

Head to Picturehouse for a dose of mayhem, Minions and much-needed entertainment to witness the ultimate crime-fighting family take to the screens in a bold new way.  Jess Bacon