The 2015 film that tells the Minions’ origin story before they meet Gru is Minions. Directed by Pierre Coffin and Kyle Balda, the animated comedy is a prequel to Despicable Me and focuses on the creatures’ long history of serving powerful villains.
The story presents the Minions as having existed since the beginning of life on Earth. Across the ages, they attach themselves to figures such as a Tyrannosaurus rex, Count Dracula and Napoleon, but their incompetence repeatedly causes their masters’ downfall. After losing another boss, Kevin, Stuart and Bob set out to find a new villain to follow.
Their search leads them to Scarlet Overkill, a 1960s supervillain who wants to become Queen of England. The film eventually brings the Minions into contact with a young Gru, establishing the relationship seen in Despicable Me. Sing and The Lorax are unrelated animated films, while Despicable Me comes first in the franchise’s release order but is not the Minions’ origin-story film.