The “Minions” have been at the center of a major controversy at the 2026 Winter Olympics.
The drama involves Spanish figure skater, Tomas-Llorenc Guarino Sabate, whose viral Minions-themed routine was nearly scrapped due to a copyright battle with Universal Studios, just days before he was set to take the ice in the one of the biggest figure skating competitions of his life.
Sabate, 26, had been practicing his beloved Minions routine for months and before being told he couldn’t use the mischievous cartoons’ music, due to copyright issues.
Amber Glenn, a 26-year-old Team USA singles figure skater – who will be skating to Madonna’s “Like A Prayer” – broke down the situation to reporters during her media rounds on Wednesday, Feb. 4, saying she’s disappointed by the entire situation.
“I told people they were going to see the Minions at the Olympics. I don’t want to be a liar,” she said. “We have tried our hardest to get everything clear, do what we can, and honestly, a producer could just decide, ‘Hey, never mind, no.”
Not since the co-creator of the Minions disavowed their history have we had a despicable scandal like this. The Spanish figure skater Tomàs-Llorenç Guarino Sabaté, who’s set to compete at the 2026 Winter Olympics, will now be allowed to perform his Minion short-form routine after… pic.twitter.com/Njzbt9EYaa
— New York Magazine (@NYMag) February 4, 2026
How a viral campaign convinced ‘Despicible Me’ to reconsider
Music rights for a song can be split between numerous individuals, so approvals aren’t always cut and dry.
Top-level skaters typically try their best to secure permission before their routine, hoping and praying there are no objections, as the approval process can be long. That’s exactly what Sabate did.
His short program consists of a medley of four different songs from the “Despicable Me” franchise, and fans were pushing for the studio to approve his rights to use the music on the world stage.
“LET THE MINION SKATE!!!!” one user wrote on X.
“let him use the minions music you absolute cowards!!! Disgusting. Boycotting universal until I see figure skating to minions,” a second quipped.
“This is so wrong and unfair for him to have to use an old program or create a whole new one right before the Olympic,” someone else complained.
Eventually the roars were heard, and Sabate announced on social media that Universal Studios reconsidered – for now.
He shared a message on Instagram announcing the news immediately he got the good news.
“Huge THANK YOU to everyone who reposted, shared, and supported,” Sabate wrote on his Instagram stories. “Because of you, Universal Studios reconsidered and officially granted the rights for this one special occasion. I’m so happy to see that the minions hitting Olympic ice is becoming real again!!”
🇪🇸 Tomàs-Llorenç Guarino Sabaté says that due to the support he’s received Universal Studios have reconsidered and granted the rights for his Minions program, there are still a couple of things to be tied up but he is very close to clearing it. pic.twitter.com/FkgNCQGl8t
— Anything GOEs (@AnythingGOE) February 3, 2026
