Review: Masters of the Universe is actually about ‘HR Man’

Nicholas Galitzine stars as He-Man in MASTERS OF THE UNIVERSE.

That’s not a typo – this is a review of a film about He-Man, HR adviser!

When asked to describe the world of He-Man, the more said, the more farcical it sounds. A silly blond prince, Adam Glenn, with a fabulous haircut in the fictional land of Eternia conceals his secret identity as He-Man, an oiled and bronzed hero in a loincloth who draws power from a magical sword. He-Man rides a talking green tiger into battle against an assortment of scantily-clad and anatomically enhanced enemies whose ringleader is a cackling, muscled, blue…skeleton. Well, He-Man was originally a cartoon.

Yet He-Man’s appeal to adults was always there, so in 1987, Dolph Lundgren brought the muscleman to Earth to help Courtney Cox fight bad guys. That movie was universally derided, although it attempted to take the mythos seriously, a little like David Lynch’s Dune. And like Denis Villeneuve’s recent reimagining of that story, a new version of Masters of the Universe arrives from a different angle. This Masters of the Universe is not serious. Made with Mattel’s blessing (and the promise of a Billion dollar box office like Greta Gerwig’s Barbie), this Masters of the Universe leans hard into cringe comedy. It’s a pity that in a film that looks and sounds so gorgeous, only one in ten of those jokes land. This film is gloriously fun, bone-crunchingly violent and not for children. The narrative choices (made by four separate writers) do Masters of the Universe serious harm – the tone of director Travis Knight’s movie just doesn’t land. But that doesn’t mean there isn’t fun to be had.

Upending the lore, in this version, Nicholas Galitzine plays Adam as a bumbling buffoon with limited people skills, hurled from Eternia to his mother’s (Charlotte Riley) home planet, Earth, after Skeletor (Jared Leto – uh oh) stages a coup. Forced to fend for himself, Adam grows up to work in Human Resources. Luckily, his childhood friend Teela (Camila Mendes) comes to find him (and, more importantly, the master sword which will defeat Skeletor) and bring him back home. Once back in Eternia, He-Man is reunited with his Master-at-Arms (Idris Elba), many now downtrodden heroes of Eternia and with Cringer, his pet tiger, now all grown up. With spirits low, it’s time for Adam to put his people skills to use (and to call for the Power of Greyskull).

(l-r): Roboto (Kristen Wiig), Man At Arms (Idris Elba), Adam (Nicholas Galitzine), Teela (Camila Mendes) and Cringer in MASTERS OF THE UNIVERSE.

Masters of the Universe looks delectable. A psychedelic treat, its large budget was clearly spent on glorious special effects realising the world, the creatures and the fight scenes. Daniel Pemberton’s score riffs on the classic theme tune, along with a great soundtrack that brings thronging 80s synth to every scene. But this story is awful. He-Man is an idiot and is required to play Adam like he’s in a bad episode of The Office. Alison Brie is wonderful as Evil-Lyn, having to work with a teeth-chattering, hammy yet not quite camp enough co-star (although one amusing joke involves Skeletor saying he can’t simply talk out his conflicts because I AM THE VILLAIN!)

A strong stomach for awkward humour and a willingness to tolerate style over substance are required to fully fall for Masters of the Universe, but anyone with a love of He-Man will find something to enjoy. It’s just a shame that in 2026, harnessing the power of Greyskull should have delivered more.