(Photo by Illumination / courtesy Everett Collection)
It’s not easy to break into the major American animation scene when it’s already dominated by the likes of Pixar, DreamWorks, Blue Sky, Laika, and more — but Illumination found a way. Founded just over a decade ago in 2007, the studio stole hearts from the get-go with Despicable Me, which has spawned an entertainment empire including two movie sequels and a Minions spin-off for its ubiquitous endearing/annoying yellow boys. Meanwhile, films like The Grinch and Sing have solidified Illumination’s game plan of making upper mid-budget films with global appeal, which means the studio has yet to have a commercial dud. Minions: The Rise of Gru is out, and so is The Super Mario Bros. Movie and Migration or 2023. With that, we’re ranking every Illumination movie by Tomatometer! —Alex Vo
#1
Adjusted Score: 87976%
Critics Consensus: Borrowing heavily (and intelligently) from Pixar and Looney Tunes, Despicable Me is a surprisingly thoughtful, family-friendly treat with a few surprises of its own.
#2
Adjusted Score: 83382%
Critics Consensus: Despicable Me 2 offers plenty of eye-popping visual inventiveness and a number of big laughs.
#3
Adjusted Score: 82323%
Critics Consensus: Fast-paced, funny, and blessed with a talented voice cast, The Secret Life of Pets offers a beautifully animated, cheerfully undemanding family-friendly diversion.
#4
Adjusted Score: 79624%
Critics Consensus: Sing delivers colorfully animated, cheerfully undemanding entertainment with a solid voice cast and a warm-hearted — albeit familiar — storyline that lives up to its title.
#5
Adjusted Score: 78319%
Critics Consensus: Second verse, same as the first: For audiences that enjoyed the first installment, Sing 2 should prove another endearing diversion.
#6
Adjusted Score: 75408%
Critics Consensus: Beautiful animation and entertaining work from a talented voice cast help Migration take flight in spite of a story that doesn’t quite stand out from the flock.
#7
Adjusted Score: 78474%
Critics Consensus: The Minions‘ antic shenanigans are beginning to grate despite this sequel’s injection of retro chic, although this loony marathon of gags will still delight young children.
#8
Adjusted Score: 68129%
Critics Consensus: The Secret Life of Pets 2 doesn’t teach its animated stars any new narrative tricks — but for fans of the original, this funny, energetic sequel should still satisfy.
#9
Adjusted Score: 69486%
Critics Consensus: Despicable Me 3 should keep fans of the franchise consistently entertained with another round of colorful animation and zany — albeit somewhat scattershot — humor.
#10
Adjusted Score: 69367%
Critics Consensus: The Grinch gives the classic Seuss source material a brightly animated update that’s solidly suitable for younger viewers without adding substantially to the story’s legacy.
#11
Adjusted Score: 75383%
Critics Consensus: While it’s nowhere near as thrilling as turtle tipping your way to 128 lives, The Super Mario Bros. Movie is a colorful — albeit thinly plotted — animated adventure that has about as many Nintendos as Nintendon’ts.
#12
Adjusted Score: 66722%
Critics Consensus: The Minions’ brightly colored brand of gibberish-fueled insanity stretches to feature length in their self-titled Despicable Me spinoff, with uneven but often hilarious results.
#13
Adjusted Score: 60988%
Critics Consensus: Dr. Seuss’ The Lorax is cute and funny enough but the moral simplicity of the book gets lost with the zany Hollywood production values.
#14
Adjusted Score: 29162%
Critics Consensus: It’s impressively animated, but Hop‘s script is so uninspired that not even James Marsden’s frantic mugging can give it any bounce.