Masters of the Universe Embraces Identity Shaping for Past and Present Fans

 

What do Roadblock (G.I. Joe: A Real American Hero), Slowpoke Rodriguez (Looney Toons Speedy Gonzalez cartoon shorts) and Orko (He-Man and the Masters of the Universe) have in common? They were all sidekicks. You know, those characters whose sole purpose is to provide emotional support, comic relief and/or complimentary skills to the main character in any film or series – action or otherwise.

In the 1980’s, minority characters in animated series and films were hardly ever the lead characters and almost seemingly relegated to the sidekick.  Orko was a floating magical jester from “He-Man and the Masters of the Universe” acting as Prince Adam’s bumbling sidekick. While alien, Orko functioned as a stand-in for the marginalized “comic relief” minority trope, constantly struggling to master his own abilities.  Not to mention, his face was literally jet black with yellow eyes.

Fast forward to 2026,  Idris Elba as Duncan/Man-At-Arms could have easily been relegated to such a role, but instead is the anchor possessing the tactical knowledge and wisdom to restore the hero’s (Adam) birthright. Duncan is no one’s sidekick thanks to this iteration where Director Travis Knight brings the legendary franchise back to the big screen in this epic live-action adventure.

After being separated for 15 years, the Sword of Power leads Prince Adam (Nicholas Galitzine) back to Eternia where he discovers his home shattered under the fiendish rule of Skeletor (Jared Leto). To save his family and his world, Adam must join forces with his closest allies, Teela (Camila Mendes) and Duncan/Man-At-Arms (Idris Elba), and embrace his true destiny as He-Man — the most powerful man in the universe.

During CinemaCon 2026, a group of journalists (including moí) were treated to exclusive footage, as well as, an exclusive roundtable discussion with Director Travis Knight, Nicholas Galitzine and Camille Mendez  on how this franchise has become a space where legacy in being reinterpreted across generations, past, present and future and how word of mouth traditions are passed down through family to shape their identity for eternity.

Did you grow up watching the animated Masters of the Universe?

CAMILLA MENDEZ: I was born in the ’90s, but my family in Brazil are all huge fans of He-Man.  They grew up watching it  were telling me all the names of the characters in Portuguese, which was really cool. Obviously, when I got the part, I immediately watched every single episode,  read every single comic  trying to immerse myself in this world as much as possible. It’s so rare that you get to be a part of something that has that kind of lore. So to be able to take little notes, take away little details of the character for yourself to kind of have like a launching pad to build the character is really fun.

Nick, can you talk about shooting and saying that incantation? How much did you prepare? How much did it change?

NICHOLAS GALITZINE: It was emotional for me. This is someone who’s been put down their entire lives.  He’s told by his teachers when he arrives on Earth that he’s crazy and this incantation just completely empowers him  vindicating his life of struggles. I didn’t want to have something so prepared in my mind that I couldn’t really feel from my core and my gut. There’s various iconic iterations of it now, of course, and you wanna bring your own, sensability to it.

What’s the secret to  make it so authentic to what we remember, but something that still works for the general audience?

TRAVIS KNIGHT: I was a fan long before I was a filmmaker and had that kind of emotional connection with it when I was younger. It was crucial for me to tap into why I fell in love with those things in the first place and to make sure they are honored in how we’re bringing these characters to the screen.

How challenging are the action sequences to shoot- particularly the one on the bridge and the one at the beginning with Duncan (Idris)?

TRAVIS KNIGHT: Action is complicated and takes a lot longer  than one might think.  To start with, I work with my screenwriter, Chris Butler, who I’ve worked with  for years at Laika, and we crafted action we felt like was fundamentally character-based, but was also really fun to watch. After we did that,  I worked with, some of my guys at Laika to storyboard a bunch of that stuff within an inch of its life. The,  we take all of that stuff and we work with our stunt coordinator and our second unit director, Li Yang, Yang, who is the best in the world and really inventive.

The stunts needed to be high octane and Idris was particularly impressive. We would show him a scene in the morning of him fighting those dudes in the hallway and he would learn that choreography that morning before the shoot. He’s incredible! He’s got like a dancer’s mind and can like learn choreography so quickly. Plus, he’s just this big strong guy, and we call for it, he can move with  this balletic grace.

It’s very rare these days to, to have a film that’s so unapologetically embracing the vibe of the era.  There’s the fun and the camp element where the villains have dialogue, and there’s so much talking in between the fighting. Curious if the plan from the beginning was to keep that tone, or was there ever a push to make it more adult or modern or push away from the era?

TRAVIS KNIGHT: Masters of the Universe is something that’s fun, playful, there is a degree of camp, as there are aspects which are utterly ridiculous and silly. Yet I loved it when I was a kid and still love it. So, we took the world seriously even though some aspects of it are ridiculous.  It was important to have a foot in each world as we are telling an emotional story…a story that means something.  I think at its  core there’s an emotional story centered on Adam and his journey. This is an origin story from  kind of  Adam twe knew from the cartoon to becoming He-Man. Adam essentially represents empathy, strength and the movie is about trying to find ways to reconcile those things. I think about what happens next for Adam. Where does the next stage of his life take him? Now that he’s He-Man, what does that mean?  It’s always about relationships for me and how do those relationships evolve moving forward.

Just like the Barbie and G.I. Joe franchises based on dolls, produced by Amazon MGM Studios, Masters of the Universe will join the ranks and hit theatres on June 5th starring Idris Elba, Nicholas Galitzine and Camilla Mendes.