Masters of the Universe review

MASTERS OF THE UNIVERSE: 

A FUN, SILLY ADVENTURE IN THE WORLD OF ETERNIA! 

By Nico Beland

Movie Review: *** out of 4

MGM

Nicholas Galitzine, Idris Elba, Camila Mendes, and Morena Baccarin in Masters of the Universe

 

            The manliest superhero ever created, He-Man, returns to the big screen in Masters of the Universe, the new film based on the iconic Mattel toy line, He-Man and the Masters of the Universe. This is not the first time He-Man appeared on the big screen, as there was already a 1987 film version of Masters of the Universe by Cannon Films and starring the legendary Dolph Lundgren as the beefy warrior…which I’m not gonna lie, I kind of enjoy for how bad and dumb it is. 

            I should also get this out of the way: I was never big into He-Man growing up. I never owned the toys, nor did I watch any of the animated cartoon shows that came out, but I have a basic understanding of what the franchise is like. A similar reaction I had to Power Rangers was never really my thing as a kid. 

            So, I’m going into this movie with a very basic knowledge of He-Man, and boy, did this reboot have quite a journey, dating all the way back to 2009, and was tossed around between Sony Pictures, Netflix, and MGM, among various production delays. It’s honestly kind of a miracle the movie saw the light of day, but now that it’s out with director Travis Knight (Kubo and the Two Strings, Bumblebee, Wildwood) helming it, is it the He-Man movie people have been waiting for? I liked it. 

            I don’t think this is a great film by any means, but as a fun, silly summer blockbuster, I enjoyed my time with this version of Masters of the Universe. It’s a movie that knows what it is and doesn’t try to be anything more; this isn’t the Dark Knight or Captain America: The Winter Soldier of He-Man movies. 

            The film follows Prince Adam (Nicholas Galitzine-The Craft: Legacy, Bottoms, The Sheep Detectives), who was sent from the magical fantasy land of Eternia to live on Earth to protect him from the forces of the tyrannical warlord, Skeletor (Jared Leto-Dallas Buyers Club, Blade Runner 2049, Tron: Ares) when he was a child. He spends his days at an everyday job, has a roommate, and tries to go out on a date with a woman, though in actuality, he’s searching for the mighty Sword of Power in hopes of returning to Eternia. 

            He does end up finding the sword and is whisked back to Eternia alongside his childhood friend and warrior, Teela (Camila Mendes-Riverdale, Palm Springs, Fairfax) and her adoptive father and general, Duncan/Man-At-Arms (Idris Elba-Marvel Cinematic Universe, Zootopia 1 and 2, Sonic the Hedgehog franchise) as they form a rebellion against Skeletor who has taken over Eternia in the fifteen years Adam was gone and now, he must unlock the powers of the sword and become the mighty, He-Man. 

            The film also stars Alison Brie (Scream 4 and 5, The Lego Movie 1 and 2, Together) as Evil-Lyn, James Purefoy (Rome, The Following, Pennyworth) as King Randor, Charlotte Riley (Easy Virtue, Peaky Blinders, London Has Fallen) as Queen Marlena, Morena Baccarin (Firefly, Gotham, Deadpool trilogy) as the Sorceress, Jóhannes Haukur Jóhannesson (Game of Thrones, Alpha, Vikings: Valhalla) as Fisto, Jon Xue Zhang as Ram-Man, Sam C. Wilson as Trap Jaw, Sasheer Zamata (Saturday Night Live, Woke, Agatha All Along) as Suzie, Christiaan Bettridge as Dian, and James Wilkinson as Mekaneck; and features the voices of Kristen Wiig (Bridesmaids, How to Train Your Dragon franchise, Despicable Me franchise) as Roboto and Tom Wilton as the voice of Cringer/Battle Cat. 

            Overall, Masters of the Universe is an enjoyably dumb popcorn movie that embraces the epicness and silliness of its source material while also offering a fun, entertaining ride for the uninitiated. I’ll be upfront and say it is not a perfect film and there are tons of narrative and tonal issues with it, but I had a good time in the theater and was invested just enough in the characters and story. 

            Nicholas Galitzine, I thought, did a solid job as Adam/He-Man with kind of a Clark Kent/Superman thing going on during his time on Earth, but unlike Superman, he remembers where he came from. He makes jokes and actually does try to resolve the issues with Skeletor’s army non-violently as someone who worked in Human Resources, but also understands the seriousness of the situation and does what he can to be a hero. I was shocked that the reporter from The Sheep Detectives ended up being a good He-Man, but not as shocked as what I’m about to say next. 

            Jared Leto as Skeletor…is actually kinda perfect, and let me make this clear, I am not a fan of Jared Leto, I did not like his Joker in Suicide Squad, thought Morbius was an absolute trainwreck, and was completely indifferent to Tron: Ares. To my surprise, Leto plays the part of Skeletor very well and captures the menace of the character while also having a degree of goofiness. Thank you, Leto, for not ruining this movie. 

            The movie also does some meta references to the He-Man franchise though nowhere near to the extent of something like the Barbie movie, but I was delighted by Dolph Lundgren’s cameo and was genuinely applauding and cheering when What’s Up? by 4 Non Blondes (The “Heyyeyaaeyaaeyaeyaa” song) plays during an action sequence (Also, funny that song was also used in the new Street Fighter movie trailer which was shown before this). You can definitely tell Travis Knight and his crew had a lot of love for both the He-Man franchise…and all the memes and jokes that came out of it. 

            A lot of the action scenes are pretty fun, though they are very CGI-heavy, and while some of it looks good, others just look like a video game or somehow more cartoony than the actual cartoon was. Still, there are some cool space battles, and the hand-to-hand combat is pretty exhilarating, even if it does go into Zack Snyder territory towards the end. 

            It’s a fun watch, but there are some major issues I have with the film, the biggest being its inconsistent tone. The movie is very jokey and constantly trying to hammer in the jokes, quips, and one-liners, and while some of them can be funny, others feel like bad MCU jokes you’d hear in something like Thor: Love and Thunder, and sometimes they interfere with the heavier, more heartfelt moments involving the characters. 

            The 2026 Masters of the Universe is a fun mess of a movie that’s enjoyably silly in mostly the right ways. It has decent action, charismatic characters, and a Jared Leto performance that doesn’t ruin the whole thing, even if the tone is all over the place and the writing isn’t particularly good. Grab your sword and enjoy this 2026 version of 80s cheese.