‘Despicable Me’ showcases that being an adoptive parent is not for anyone, at least at first
It doesn’t take more than a few minutes into Despicable Me, the 2010 minion-infested hit film, to see a supervillain isn’t fit to be a parent. Gru — who conjures up a plan to shrink and steal the moon — adopts three girls from a local orphanage, but it takes him way too long to figure out how to properly treat them. Here are some of the reasons Gru isn’t a successful adoptive parent and how, in reality, he wouldn’t even pass the application process.
A background check would have instantly denied Gru
A simple background check would have found Gru’s extensive list of crimes and, in turn, immediately declined his application to become an adoptive parent. Even if he somehow passed the background check and was interviewed during the home study, hopefully the interviewer would find out about his evil lair and evident lack of parent skills. Plus, how would Gru respond to a normal question during this process, such as “What do you hope to get out of parenting?” Keeping Gru’s initial intentions in mind, there’s no way he would provide a good response to that.
Gru blatantly treats the three girls poorly
Besides the fact that Gru adopts Margo, Edith and Agnes just so they can access his archrival’s headquarters via cookie selling, he treats them poorly, even though they’re simply following his ridiculous requests. After the girls want to spend the day at a theme park, he plans on leaving them there since they fulfilled his mission. No parent who is lucky enough to have a successful adoption process would ever thinking about abandoning their kids. Even though Gru starts to get along with the girls after this day together, a man on a quest to do the most evil task possible is not parent-material.
Gru gets better, but it’s too late
The multiple spin-offs and sequels of Despicable Me capture Gru finally realizing how to properly care for and love the three girls, but his actions at the beginning of this original are almost disheartening. Of course, all parents make inevitable mistakes, but just considering leaving your own kids behind should be a tell-tale sign that parenting isn’t the path for you. Gru acted out with evil intentions, and though he becomes more lovable as the film goes on, his opening actions can’t be forgotten or forgiven.
If you want to learn more about creating your own family or find adoption resources, visit adoptionchoicesofarizona.org or text us at 1-480-900-5520.
