Masters of the Universe (2026): A New Rendition Brings More Middling Results (4K)

The Film:

Over the nearly 40 years since the original big screen adaptation of "Masters of the Universe" was deemed a critical & commercial failure, there have been a number of rumblings from studios & filmmakers who wanted to try their hand at delivering a better version that would please fans of the toys & the cartoon, and while a few additional well-received animated iterations came about in that time, it ended up taking all the way to 2026 for another film to be released. This time, director Travis Knight, screenwriters Chris Butler, Aaron Nee, Adam Nee, and David Callaham, and an ensemble featuring some rather impressive names take on the challenge of trying to give audiences a fun & exciting outing with the material. With almost four decades to learn from past mistakes, can this new team possibly put something together that will please fans who've been waiting ages for a proper He-Man film?

The film opens in the city of Eternos on the planet Eternia, where Prince Adam (Artie Wilkinson-Hunt), son of King Randor (James Purefoy), and his friend Teela (Eire Farrell) are being trained to fight by the King's Man-At-Arms/Teela's father Duncan (Idris Elba). When their city is attacked by the evil Skeletor (Jared Leto), Adam's parents are kidnapped, forcing the boy to escape through a portal to Earth with the Sword of Power with the help of The Sorceress (Morena Baccarin), the guardian of Castle Greyskull.

Fifteen years later, Adam (Nicholas Galitzine) has settled in to life on Earth, having gotten a job in human resources, but remains obsessed with finding the Sword of Power that he lost. He is able to reclaim it from a comic store after receiving an anonymous tip, but upon trying to use it to return home, he finds that nothing happens... or so he thinks. The sword actually sends a signal when he touches it, alerting not only his enemies, but also his friend Teela (Camila Mendes), who shows up to save him. Together, they return to what's left of Eternos after the devastation that Skeletor and his minions wrought over the years, which has forced the allies of the king to go into hiding. The remaining warriors are rather skeptical of Adam, but soon they all find themselves banding together in a desperate bid to end Skeletor's reign and set things right.

Having recently seen the original "Masters of the Universe" for the first time for coverage of its new 4K release, it's worth a brief revisit in order to do a proper comparison. Indeed, the 1987 film doesn't have the greatest reputation, though it clearly has its fans, but it was still surprising to see that it's not nearly as bad as some would try to have you believe. Yes, it has a few issues, including setting most of it on Earth, a dreadful Dolph Lundgren in the lead, and an over-abundance of laser battles, but it remains a strangely delightful piece of '80s cheese that also features a wonderful, committed performance from the great Frank Langella as Skeletor.

All that said, there were certainly a number of improvements that could be made for a new big screen iteration of the material. However, it's rather interesting to find that the situation is not all that dissimilar to what came before. There have been some improvements, some downgrades, and there are other issues afoot, but despite this latest version's somewhat low reception, it's not the all-out disaster that some are trying to make it out to be. In fact, you could fairly say that it's closer to the mark for what a He-Man film should be, even with a few problems holding it back.

For starters, there's been a fascinating swap in terms of talent between the hero and villain. As mentioned, in the original, viewers had to put up with Lundgren muddling his way through as the hero, while we also got a grand performance from Langella that brought a fair amount of gravitas to the proceedings. Here, it's strangely reversed. We get an upgrade for He-Man in the form of Nicholas Galitzine, who, while not particularly great, at least brings some acting chops to the part, while Skeletor is downgraded to Jared Leto, who practically turns the evil warlord into a big goof in spots. Yes, he was silly in the cartoon, but his character is not handled nearly as well here, making it rather difficult to take him seriously or find him threatening.

The film's other main issue is its confused tone. There's nothing wrong with trying to balance out the serious drama of the plot with some light comedic touches on the way, which the original had a decent combination of, but here they somewhat overdo it with the splashes of humor throughout. Obviously an action/adventure film like this is not meant to be taken too seriously, but it seemed like every time it starts to get serious, something overly-goofy would happen (such as tasteless jokes or the aforementioned clowning of Skeletor), breaking any dramatic hold it has on the audience. Again, some light touches interspersed throughout are fine, but jumping back and forth so much in such a jarring fashion makes it seem like the writers couldn't make up their mind as to what kind of film they wanted this to be.

On the whole, this new "Masters of the Universe" is far from terrible, but still has its share of problems that hold it back from being the exciting experience it could be. It does indeed feel closer to the kind of film we should get with this material (they at least had most of it take place in the right setting), but this group of writers struggles just a little too much to settle on the overall mood of the film, making it seem a little too wonky & disjointed. There is certainly some fun to be had here, and if these fellas had another chance, they might be able to iron out the kinks for a sequel, but sadly that's very unlikely to happen given this outing's extremely poor box office performance. It was an admirable effort, but in the end, it ultimately leaves fans waiting for an adaptation that truly gets it right.

Video/Audio:

"Masters of the Universe" (2026) comes to 4K in a 2.39:1, 2160p Ultra High Definition transfer of marvelous quality. The picture is brilliantly sharp & clear throughout its entire 140-minute runtime, perfectly highlighting its multitude of visual effects & designs. Likewise, the Dolby Atmos-TrueHD audio track is outstanding, giving you all of the dialogue, sound effects, and music in excellent quality. Overall, MGM has done a wonderful job in both departments for the film's 4K debut.

Special Features:

Behind-the-Scenes Promotional Gallery (12 Featurettes, 15 Minutes): A series of very brief featurettes that has the cast & crew discussing the film.

Masters of Light: Skies of Eternia Drone Spectacle (3 Minutes): A brief look at a promotional event for the film.

Conclusion:

Travis Knight's new big screen iteration of "Masters of the Universe" presents another mixed offering of the material, giving us an upgrade in He-Man himself and a downgrade in its Skeletor, while also having strange tonal issues throughout, ultimately resulting in a rendition that does have some fun to offer, but which ends up feeling a little too wonky & disjointed.

Score: 3/5

Available on 4K starting today.

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