Noah Lyles & Anna Hall Caught in an Unexpected Feature as $100 Million Budgeted Despicable Me 4 Drops Video

The 2024 Paris Olympics is almost here, and the anticipation and excitement are off the charts. In the days leading up to it, we’ve witnessed several surprises that keep fans wanting more. One of the most recent surprises features 100m and 200m World Champion, Noah Lyles and US Heptathlon Champion, Anna Hall. 

Lyles and Hall are making waves with the promotional feature for the $100 Million budgeted Despicable Me 4 film. This unexpected crossover between animated film and athletics has garnered a lot of attention, hyping fans up even more for the Games in the French Capital. But how did these star athletes find themselves alongside the adorable yet mischievous minions?

Noah Lyles & Anna Hall’s new feature creates Paris hype

The Olympics will be held in Paris from 26th July to 11th August this year, and Despicable Me 4 will grace screens nationwide on 3rd July. The Minions have a huge fan presence, just like the Olympic Games. It only made sense to bring both of them together. To hype the fans up, the official Despicable Me 4 account posted the feature early this morning captioning it, “jump, jump, jump into the #ParisOlympics beginning Friday, July 26 on @nbc and @peacock.” Noah Lyles, Anna Hall, and Ryan Crouser help add an athletic element to this lighthearted video. 

We see Lyles, Crouser, and Hall prep for practice until they’re ‘rudely’ interrupted by the minions. They then break into song and dance while we watch the three of them accompany them. We see Lyles jumping to the tune, Hall high-fiving them in the stands, and Crouser throwing one of the minions as he would a shot put, and then eventually all of them jumping as the video comes to an end. 

Competitive sports often have a serious side to them, but the athletes do a very good job of blending into the fun animated world of the minions. Campaigns like these often do a good job of bridging the gap between their off-field and on-field personality, creating a memory fans wouldn’t forget as easily.

With Lyles, Crouser, and Hall partying it up with the minions, the feature will bring more attention not only to the upcoming movie but to the Olympic Games as well. This isn’t the first time that athletes have been featured in promos leading up to big events. They often act as fan service, showcasing the influence they have on captivating their audience. So, what other features have caught the fan’s attention before? 

Netflix’s Olympic Games in Paris

Keeping in trend with featuring athletes in promos, Lily Collins from Emily in Paris was recently featured in an NBC promo with Noah Lyles. The promo garnered a lot of attention for how witty it is. We see Emily pitch Lyles’ new avant-garde look for the Olympics. We then pan to him, adorned in a gold robe with several chains around his neck. 

The minions have also made an appearance in a Tokyo Olympics NBC promo with Caeleb Dressel. The feature starts with a few artistic shots of a pool and him showing off his athletic abilities. The visuals are accompanied by a voiceover by Dressel. It is then cut short with a minion walking in wearing a swimming cap and speedos, belly-flopping into the pool.

The promo ends with Dressel shouting cannonball while he jumps into the pool and then bumping fists with the minion. All of these promos capture the athletes’ fun personality well. It gives the fans a sneak peek into what their favorites are like off-field. The promos also do an exceptional job of capturing the electric spirit of the upcoming games.

As the Paris Olympics inch closer, adding a fun twist of pop culture with star athletes like Lyles and Hall adds a flamboyant twist to the event. The Despicable Me 4 promo is surely making the build-up to the Olympic games an amusing journey. Are you excited to watch your favorites in the French Capital?