Universal Pictures and Illumination Entertainment is very invested in the Despicable Me franchise, which has made them a whole lot of money. The main character of the film, Gru, has a band of minions simply known as the Minions, and these yellow creatures will have their own film this summer. Like most family movies, there will be a toy tie-in with McDonald's Happy Meals, and one such Minion toy is causing controversy as it sounds like it is swearing, says parents.
According to Grub Street, one of these cute and tiny plastic minion toys will say "what the f__k" if it is switched on and tapped. It is specifically one character known as the Minion Caveman, who has two eyes (some Minions have one, some have three) and has a bone in its hair and wearing a loincloth.
These reports have been from all across the nation, and one of them comes from a grandfather who told WFTV in Orlando "I can't believe it's coming out of a toy". WFTV reports that the official word from McDonalds is that "Minions speak 'Minionese' which is a random combination of many languages and nonsense words and sounds. 'Minionese' has no translation to, or meaning in any recognized language. Any perceived similarities to words used within the English language are purely coincidental."
Of course, most toys are usually tested before they are sent out in the market, and it is odd that whoever made this toy didn't notice the "similarities to words used within the English language" and tried to program words in it that could be mistaken for f-bombs. There is a video of the toy speaking on Gizmodo if you want to hear it for yourself.
Many are under the impression that Minionese is an actual language that is possible to speak such as the Na'vi from Avatar, the Dothraki language from Game of Thrones, Elvish from the Lord of the Rings, and Klingon from Star Trek. Hollywood Reporter stated two years ago, back when Despicable Me 2 was released, that the minion's language includes French, Spanish, and food references. The Minions are voiced by Despicable Me 2 directors Pierre Coffin and Chris Renaud, and Coffin is credited in playing the Minions on the prequel film's imdb page.
The Minions film is about a trio of Minions named Stuart, Kevin, and Bob who find themselves in a situation where they have no one to serve, a Minion's worst nightmare. The three of them go out on the road where they meet a new potential master named Scarlet Overkill (Sandra Bullock) and her husband Herb (Jon Hamm). The Minions movie will be released on July 10, 2015, and is currently scoring a 6.9 on imdb.
There doesn't seem to be any report of McDonalds recalling the toy, but I'm going to make a suggestion: certain toys go up in value if there is a forced recall. If you are the type who collects old toys and sells them, then you might want to consider seeing how many of these f-bomb Minion Cavemen that your local McDonalds will sell you.
