‘The universe shall quake in my shadow’ — ‘Masters of the Universe’ looks like the summer’s most metal movie

Masters of The Universe – Official Trailer – YouTube

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Longing for the colorful tumbling force of fantastic ’80s-era sci-fi sword-and-sorcery flicks that dominated multiplexes and mom-and-pop video rental shops in the Reagan years? Well, your needs might soon be satiated, at least temporarily, when witnessing the unapologetic action-oriented revelry and energetic flair on display in the new “Masters of the Universe” (MOTU) trailer.

Like the January teaser, fans are given glimpses of He-Man and his loyal companions Teela (Camila Mendes), Duncan/Man-at-Arms (Idris Elba), Roboto (Kristen Wiig), Cringer/Battle Cat, and many other familiar Eternia denizens. Rounding out the lineup of “MOTU” characters are Evil-Lyn (Alison Brie), The Sorceress (Morena Baccarin), King Randor (James Purefoy), Queen Marlena (Charlotte Riley), Trap Jaw (Sam C. Wilson), and Suzie (Sasheer Zamata).

Eternia has been wonderfully rendered by the film’s visual effects crew in this full-length preview, with plenty of eye candy for “MOTU” geeks to gorge themselves with. It’s positively buzzing with spaceships, gleaming steel, lightning bolts, flowing lava, psychedelic forests, and a solid sense of nostalgia, yet it’s steering into less campy territory than its cinematic predecessor.

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It even has Battle Cat cleverly replacing the MGM lion logo in the intro, so how can you not love that?! And we’re totally digging that synthwave rock score! The whole thing is just so…. metal!

Adapted from Mattel’s popular 1980s toy line, “Masters of the Universe” revolves around the charismatic character of Prince Adam of Eternia, who transforms into the invincible musclebound beefcake, He-Man, when activating the mystical Sword of Power. Alongside the toys, “He-Man and the Masters of the Universe” have also starred in an iconic Saturday morning cartoon series and the 1987 live-action Hollywood film starring Dolph Lundgren and Frank Langella.

Now, Amazon MGM Studios and Mattel Studios have joined forces to deliver a 21st-century iteration of He-Man, which is directed by Travis Knight (“Bumblebee”) and blasting into theaters on June 5, 2026.

“Masters of the Universe” stars Taylor Kitsch lookalike Nicholas Galitzine as the Earth-bound Adam Glenn, aka Prince Adam/He-Man, who teleports to the planet Eternia to try and seize back the royal throne of Castle Greyskull and save his world from Jared Leto’s (“Tron: Ares”) sinister arch-villain, Skeletor.

With a script penned by Chris Butler, Aaron Nee, Adam Nee, and Dave Callaham, and executive produced by Ynon Kreiz, Bill Bannerman, and David Bloomfield, “Masters of the Universe” powers into theaters to kick off the summer on June 5, 2026.

In the meantime, you can stream the original cartoon on Amazon Prime Video.