The Plug Talk on Instagram: "“The Birth of the Minions” Long before they became pop culture icons, the Minions were never meant to be the stars of Despicable Me. In early drafts from 2008, Gru was the only comedic center the Minions were supposed to be simple robot-like henchmen with no real voices, just silent background workers. But director Pierre Coffin, working with writer Sergio Pablos and producer Chris Meledandri, wanted something more human something innocent enough to soften Gru’s vill