Sometimes, all it needs is a memorable character to make a Movie, or a whole lots of young men pretending to be one.

Felonius Gru is the main protagonist of the Despicable Me franchise. The grumpy but smart protagonist who speaks with an East European accent. And after years waiting for the movie's sequel, Minions: The Rise of Gru finally hit the market with high anticipation.

Thanks to the internet that further blurred the ever-shrinking distinction between the meme world and the real world, young men started showing up in movie theaters dressing up in suits and tuxedos, ties, and even scarves - to look just like Gru.

The trend started on TikTok.

It began when a bunch of people doing a video lip-sync using dark suits and coordinated hand gestures while watching the hotly anticipated movie.

Sooner than later, the #GentleMinions craze spread like wildfire.

According to PostTrak, a U.S.-based service that surveys film audiences for film studios. 34% of the opening weekend audience for Minions: The Rise of Gru was between ages 13 and 17, an unusually large showing among teenagers for an animated movie. That number is a huge bump if compared to the 8% gained for the last title in the series, Despicable Me 3, which debuted in 2017.

As further evidence of the craze, Minions: The Rise of Gru was almost even in terms of gender, with 51%female and 49% male. In comparison, Despicable Me 3 was more appealing to female, with 55%.

In the first weekend, nearly 90% of the audience for Illumination and Universal’s film is under 25 years old, with 25% of attendees being younger than 12 years old.

"This is what happens when a generation grows up with a franchise,” said one insider close to the movie.

Universal president of domestic distribution in the U.S., Jim said that, “the movie is playing to a very broad audience, as well to families and the very young.”

The movie is making pandemic-era history with a domestic debut of $125 million or more for the long Friday-Monday holiday weekend, including an estimated $107 million for the three days.

That’s, by far, the biggest showing for a family title since COVID-19 struck and is one of the top 10 openings of all time for a Hollywood animated film.

"The audience was more than eager to come out and see this movie, said Orr. "It is so gratifying to see this sort of box office."

The Minions official TikTok account which has actually endorsed the #GentleMinions movement, said that it all resulted from the virality of the meme.

The account itself has attracted 3 million followers since launching 10 months ago, with 1 million new followers were added during the days the movie was released.

The GentleMinions craze was significantly smaller in other places, but it has given a meaningful effect. Minions: The Rise Of Gru is preojected to hit $128 million over the July 4 weekend, which is considered among the highest for the U.S. box office.

While celebrating another highly-anticipated movie with such a huge audience is certainly not an everyday experience, some theaters don't seem to enjoy the massive influx of the youngsters in black suits.

Some theaters went so far as to post a sign warning that it would refuse entry to anyone taking part in the meme, and prohibit entry for anyone dressing in suits.

The decision was made after patrons complained about raucous behavior.

Teenagers following the trend have been accused of making noise, vandalizing, and even throwing things during screenings.