Megamind vs. the Doom Syndicate

Megamind vs. the Doom Syndicate
Promotional release poster
Directed by	Eric Fogel
Written by	Alan Schoolcraft Brent Simons
Based on	Megamind
Starring	Keith Ferguson Laura Post Josh Brener Maya Aoki Tuttle Emily Tunon Talon Warburton Scott Adsit Chris Sullivan Tony Hale Jeanine Mason Adam Lambert
Music by	Matthew Janszen Bryan Winslow
Production company	DreamWorks Animation Television
Distributed by	Peacock
Release date	March 1, 2024 (2024-03-01)
Running time	85 minutes
Country	United States
Language	English

Megamind vs. the Doom Syndicate is a 2024 American animated superhero comedy direct-to-streaming film produced by DreamWorks Animation Television and directed by Eric Fogel. It is the sequel to the 2010 film Megamind, in addition to serving as the pilot for the television series Megamind Rules!, which premiered the same day. Starring Keith Ferguson, Laura Post, and Josh Brener, the film follows Megamind, now a superhero, as he protects Metro City from his former allies in the Doom Syndicate, a team of supervillains.

Megamind vs. the Doom Syndicate was released on Peacock on March 1, 2024. It was panned by critics and audiences, with many deeming it inferior to its predecessor.

Plot

Two days after the events of the first film, Megamind now assumes the role of Metro City's defender. He, along with Ol' Chum (formerly Minion), stops a criminal trio known as the Go-Fish gang from stealing a priceless fish. For his heroic efforts, Megamind is presented the key to the city. Chum, feeling left out and undervalued in his efforts, tells Megamind that he wants to be his sidekick. Upon being rejected, Chum claims that he will search for other opportunities, which Megamind allows.

The Doom Syndicate, a supervillain team that Megamind used to be part of, breaks out of prison to visit him, thinking that his hero role is part of an evil plan. They embark on a crime spree, eventually challenging Megamind to prove he is still evil by robbing a bank. Megamind struggles to do so, but is helped by Keiko Morita, his self-proclaimed biggest fan, who helps him stage a fake robbery. Meanwhile, Chum has taken up work at a run-down diner.

Keeping his old crew fooled, Megamind reveals an abandoned villainous plot he conducted of launching Metro City to the Moon using rockets planted underground. The Doom Syndicate prepares to launch them, but Megamind stalls them. They suspect he is up to something, and vow to either launch Metro City themselves or destroy it. Realizing that he cannot defeat the Syndicate alone, Megamind tracks Chum inside his remodeled diner and attempts to enlist his help. However, after realizing he might belong more at the shop than with him, Megamind regrets letting Chum go.

Megamind finds himself overpowered by the Doom Syndicate after they learn of his facade. He hides in an alleyway, feeling defeated, but is confronted by Roxanne and Keiko, who remind him it is okay to ask for help from others. Chum also returns as Megamind tells him he is truly his sidekick. Megamind, Chum, Roxanne, and Keiko team up to face the Doom Syndicate, but fail to stop the launch. They manage to redirect Metro City back to Earth. Roxanne is elected the new Mayor of Metro City, while Keiko launches a hero signal as Megamind feels accomplished in his new team.

In a mid-credits scene, the Doom Syndicate are locked back up in prison, where they are visited by Megamind's former mentor, Machiavillain.

Cast

Main

• Keith Ferguson as Megamind, a blue, humanoid alien supervillain-turned-superhero with a large cranium. Ferguson replaces Will Ferrell from the original film, after previously voicing the character in the original film's tie-in video games.
• Laura Post as Roxanne Ritchi, a news reporter who is Megamind's love interest. Post replaces Tina Fey from the original film.
• Josh Brener as Ol' Chum (formerly Minion), a talking alien fish who has been Megamind's best friend and sidekick since childhood. He changed his name after a cease-and-desist from a fast food chain called Mr. Minion's Meatsicles. Brener replaces David Cross from the original film.
• Maya Aoki Tuttle as Keiko Morita, Megamind's good-hearted child fan and a social media influencer.

Villains

• Adam Lambert as Machiavillain, Megamind's former mentor.

Go Fish Gang

• Todd Haberkorn as Big King Fish, the leader of the Go Fish Gang.
• Eric Murphy as Blue Mackerel, a member of the Go Fish Gang.
• Joey Rudman as Red Snapper, a member of the Go Fish Gang.

The Doom Syndicate

• Emily Tunon as Lady Doppler, a storm-themed supervillain who can manipulate weather.
• Scott Adsit as Pierre Pressure, a mime-themed supervillain who has the power of hypnosis.
• Talon Warburton as Lord Nighty-Knight (formerly Fright Knight), a knight-themed supervillain who can manipulate shadows.
• Chris Sullivan as Behemoth, a lava golem.

Supporting

• Roger Craig Smith as Jody Smelt, the mayor of Metro City. Smith replaces Stephen Kearin from the original film.
• Jeanine Mason as Christina Christo, Jody Smelt’s assistant.
• Tony Hale as Mel/Mr. Donut, the owner of a rundown diner turned donut shop.
• Michael Beattie as Eccentric Eddie, a homeless man who has a cockroach named Thaddeus.
• Eric Fogel as Polly 227, a robot parakeet Megamind built for Ol' Chum.

Metro Man / Music Man and Hal Stewart / Tighten appear in a flashback of the original film with non-speaking roles.

Production

Development

In April 2011, DreamWorks Animation CEO Jeffrey Katzenberg commented that the studio did not have plans to produce future movie-genre parodies like Megamind (2010), Monsters Vs. Aliens (2009) and Shark Tale (2004), nor sequels to these, saying that these films "all shared an approach and tone and idea of parody, and did not travel well internationally. We don't have anything like that coming on our schedule now."

In February 2022, it was announced that Peacock had ordered DreamWorks Animation Television to produce a spin-off series titled Megamind’s Guide to Defending Your City. In August of that year, it was confirmed that the writing had concluded and that the show had entered production.

In February 2024, DreamWorks Animation Television revealed a trailer for Megamind vs. the Doom Syndicate, with Keith Ferguson, Laura Post, Josh Brener, Maya Aoki Tuttle, Emily Tunon, Talon Warburton, Scott Adsit, Chris Sullivan, Tony Hale, Jeanine Mason and Adam Lambert as part of the main cast. Ferguson replaced Will Ferrell as the voice of Megamind, Post replaced Tina Fey as the voice of Roxanne and Brener replaced David Cross as the voice of Minion. Ferguson had previously voiced Megamind for video games and commercials. Writers Alan Schoolcraft, Brent Simons and director Eric Fogel defended the recasting, with Simons stating "not only does he have that experience of speaking in Will's voice, he's such a talented voice actor that he's able to kind of take the baton from Will, and build on what Will created." Schoolcraft added; "Will Ferrell has only done the voice for, you know, 85 minutes whereas Keith has now done it for 10 hours." Fogel said that Ferguson, Post, Brener and Tuttle "all bring just a real pathos, and just bring these characters to life." In the film, Minion is renamed Ol' Chum. Fogel stated that this was done to avoid association with the Minions characters who debuted in the Illumination film Despicable Me, which was released the same year as the original Megamind film. Alongside Megamind vs. the Doom Syndicate, Peacock also revealed that the previously announced television series, retitled Megamind Rules!, would serve as a follow-up to the film and be released the same day.

The concept of the Doom Syndicate was originally from an early version of the original film, but they were scrapped from the movie and instead were reused for the 2010 tie-in video game Megamind: Ultimate Showdown. Although the group made their return in Megamind vs. the Doom Syndicate, the group members differ from the ones in the video game, as Behemoth and Lady Doppler are the only two characters who were originally from the early version of the first film seen in the book The Art of Megamind.

Animation

The animation was provided by 88 Pictures, with production services by Doberman Pictures.

Release

Megamind vs. the Doom Syndicate began streaming on Peacock on March 1, 2024, alongside the first 8 episodes of Megamind Rules!.

Reception

On the review aggregator Rotten Tomatoes, the film holds an approval rating of 9% based on 11 reviews, with an average score of 2.8/10.

In a two out of four-star rating for RogerEbert.com, Nell Minow states the film "is intermittently funny and briefly heartwarming, as though they ran the original through the washing machine a few times, and then faxed it. [...] Compared to the original or to more recent films like Boss Baby and The Bad Guys, it is slapdash and lightweight." Ryan Leston of IGN called the film "a lazy, 14-years-too-late cash-in on DreamWorks IP", giving a four out of ten rating, adding that it "sets up a riotous romp through superhero cliché, but simply fails to deliver".

Director Eric Fogel has stated that he is proud of what the crew was able to accomplish on the film, which he said had a "minuscule" budget.

External links

• Official website
• Megamind vs. the Doom Syndicate at IMDb