The film that has been in development for decades now– ‘Masters of the Universe’— may actually begin filming this summer! It will be a joint venture between Sony and the newly-formed Mattel Films, with Matthew Milam overseeing the project. Twin brothers, Aaron and Adam Nee are attached to direct, with a screenplay by ‘Iron Man’s Art Marcum and Matt Holloway. ‘Masters of the Universe’ is based on the hugely popular Mattel toy line from the 1980s, which was also featured on an animated TV series, an animated theatrical movie, and a live-action movie, courtesy of Cannon Films. In the subsequent decades, various studios and creators have attempted to revive the franchise, but at long last, it appears it may actually happen.
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Obviously, the movie will focus on Prince Adam, from the planet Eternia, where magic and technology coexist. By utilizing the Power Sword, Adam can transform into the planet’s defender He-Man. It was recently rumored that Noah Centineo was in talks to take on the lead role.
Now it is rumored that certain other characters from the classic lineup will appear in the film. Unfortunately, they are mostly all no-brainers.
The first character on the list is Skeletor, the main villain of the storyline. You CAN’T have ‘Masters of the Universe’ without Skeletor. Skeletor is an ambitious skull-faced sorcerer, who was later revealed to be the brother of Adam’s father, King Randor. Speaking of…
Adam’s father, King Randor was once a powerful champion on his own right. He now rules Eternia, with Adam’s mother, Queen Marlena. According to the Filmation TV series, Marlena was an astronaut from Earth who found herself transported to Eternia. There hasn’t been mention of Marlena’s presence in the film yet. Should she appear, it will be interesting to see if the writers and directors choose to keep her Earth-bound origin.
As important as Randor is to the ‘Masters of the Universe’ mythology, he did not appear in the 1987 live-action movie.
As crucial as Skeletor is to the story, Teela is arguably equally important. The ‘Masters of the Universe’ mythology gets a little muddled, as it has been interpreted in the mini-comic books that came with the toys, separate storybooks, on the cartoon, and in the first movie, and Teela’s origin has been reinterpreted a few times. But she is generally considered the biological daughter of the Sorceress of Castle Greyskull, although that fact is kept secret, even from Teela herself. She was adopted and raised by Duncan, the royal Man-At-Arms, and eventually became the captain of the royal guard.
She has a sisterly bond with Adam, even though she is an overachiever and views him as a lazy slacker. On the other hand, she has a more romantic inclination toward his alter ego He-Man, although because the original cartoon was aimed at younger kids, that was never clearly stated.
Despite her closeness to both Adam and He-Man, she was one of the few members of the inner circle that did not know that they were the same person. (Why were they always lying to Teela?)
The last character currently said to be included in the film is Zodac, the “Cosmic Enforcer.” Although the toy was labeled as being “Evil,” Zodac is generally considered either heroic or neutral, sort of like Marvel Comics’ Watchers. Because Zodac was never used heavily in the cartoons, it remains to be seen what his role in the film will be.
One interesting note: the Zodac toy had darker skin than the other Caucasian characters, so when the line was rebooted in the early 2000s, he was given dark brown (“black”) skin, so perhaps the same will be true in this new movie.
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Last May, after the Nees had officially signed on to direct, it was expected that they would keep the script from David S. Goyer, the director attached before them. It was buzzed that Goyer’s script included these characters, as well as Man-At-Arms, Orko, Stratos, Beast Man, Evil-Lyn, and Trap Jaw. There are a LOT of characters from the original cartoon and toy line, so there is no hope that they will all appear in this film, but there is room for more, with Man-At-Arms, being the most likely inclusion.
The 1987 film featured He-Man (not Adam), Teela, Man-At-Arms, Skeletor, Beast Man, and Evil-Lyn, plus new characters invented for the movie.
With Sony planning to shoot this summer, expect more news on this project in the months to come. What do you think so far?
Source: Heroic Hollywood
