You know what? Here’s where I draw the line. This far and no further. Joel Silver and Warner Bros. are planning a live-action take on He-Man and the Masters of the Universe. You remember He-Man, don’t you? The muscle-bound hero of Eternia who battled the villainous Skeletor with the aid of a magic sword and a giant green tiger he rode like a horse? A shoddy ’80s cartoon concocted to sell a line of Mattel toys? Of course you do.
And you remember the first crappy live-action attempt at this material, 1987’s Masters of the Universe, starring Dolph Lundgren and Frank Langella? How could you forget it? I can’t…sometimes it keeps me awake at night.
So, clearly emboldened by the success of Michael Bay’s Transformers flick, they’ve launched into this. What they seem to have overlooked is that giant robots blowing stuff up is cool, will always be cool. Watermelon-thighed lunkheads shouting "By the power of Greyskull!" is not cool. Never really was. And Transformers has constantly been in the minds of geeks, nurtured by new TV series and comic book continuations. He-Man, not so much.
Am I wrong? Are you gonna be the first in line for Masters of the Universe when it hits screens in 2010? Are you as optimistic as this dude, who clearly thinks it’ll be the movie offspring of Lord of the Rings and Conan the Destroyer? Or will you, like me, run for the hills?
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“The muscle-bound hero of Eternia who battled the villainous Skeletor with the aid of a magic sword and a giant green tiger he rode like a horse?”
Hahaha great description!
When I was a kid, Skeletor use to scare the crap out of me. So it did leave an impression, but I don’t really need a live action movie. Not at all.
You’re wrong. A lot of people loved He-Man in the 80s. Maybe you were too cool or not geeky enough, but it was very popular. A lot of people would love to see a comeback. A lot of those people have little kids now, which is what makes the timing so good. They’re not looking to make an artistic impression with He-Man. It’s a money grab, and a well-timed one at that.
i had fond memories of this cartoon. then i watched it recently on joost.com. WOW I WAS DELUSIONAL AS A KID.
I grew up on He-Man and even as a kid, I knew the movie sucked but I’d totally give it another chance as long as they stayed true to the story of the tv show with epic style and little winks to the series.
Forget He-Man, I just want a comeback for Dolph Lundgren!!
whats next.. she-ra? and then will have strawberry shortcake .. care bears… and all the other cartoons that were out there..
although i wouldn’t mind watching and paying for a GI Joe movie franchise.. that was my favorite cartoon of all times..
The comics and toy line were cool, but the Filmation cartoon was crap, and Frank Langella’s Skeletor was better than that movie deserved. But I’m willing to give this a shot, if they’d be true to the Eternia of the comic book and forget Orko.
I liked He-Man, my kids had every toy! I don’t know if I would like a remake. Just look at all the other remakes recently……
Will the movie have the same undercurrents of homoeroticism as the cartoon? And will Adam have a cat and wear the purple pants?
I was absolutely a fan as a kid, but He-Man was for kids slightly younger than Transformers and (my favorite) GI Joe. So I grew out of He-Man before the latter two. The 80’s movie hardcore sucked- I even hated it back then, but I’m open to them redoing it and will, at the very least, rent the blu ray. Stoked on the new GI Joe but I DO know it’s gonna be a huge disappointment. Not that I’m expecting much. And Transformers 2? Same thing- I hate you, Micheal Bay, for being the one chosen by the studios to ruin Transformers.
Well this summer should set the standard for the return of 80’s cartoons on the big screen with Transformers 2 and G.I. Joe.
i was 19 and saw Dolph Lungren’s “Masters of the Universe” TWICE in the theaters. ’nuff said. Good Journey.
I am game…as long as the sequel includes…She-ra “Princess of Power” She rocked it on her magical pegasus!
Why is the writer acting like a He-Man movie is suddenly news? There’s been a He-Man project in development for at least a decade. John Woo was attached once.
Old news, buddy. He-Man movie’s been around for almost two years. Get a clue.
“homoeroticism”…Glad I wasn’t the only person to see that about the cartoon.
I always laughed even at the aged of 7 when he would say “the only people who know about my fabulous powers”. I LOVED that. In my opinion, He-Man was the 80’s. That was one of the best cartoons on tv..behind Thundercats of course. Now I would love to see a Thundercats movie. Maybe in CGI if done right.
Just in case a Hollywood person is reading this, remember…Thunder..Thunder…Thundercats.HOOOOOOOOOOOO.
make this into a movie. Those kids had those ball bombs, Panter or whatever had those numchucks, the chick Cheetra had that stick and was so fast. So it would be alot of violence and action. and Mumra was the bomb evil guy.
You are wrong, WRONG, WRONG, and you’re talking to a guy, who still have his Battlecat in a place of honor on his desk!!!!
It’s news because Joel Silver’s name is now attached to the He-man project.
Love He-Man, Love this idea! I’m hoping it does lean more towards Lord of the Rings than the previous movie. The first movie got it wrong by setting it in modern times. If this movie is set in Eternia, and all the major players are ther, it will be awesome. Beast Man, Moss Man, Man at Arms, Teela, Evil-Lyn, Skeletor, The Horde, c’mon people, this movie could rock!
You could not be more wrong. Marc “Captain Buzz Kill” Bernardin
That’s sweet!!! He-Man definitely needs a reboot into our modern age of visual effects, i couldn’t be more pumped. You gotta remember, Joel Silver produced the Matrix Trilogy and the underappreciated Speed Racer. Can’t…Freaking…Wait!
I’m for it, as long as they promise to then make a She-Ra movie, which I would definitely see. Princess of Power!
If they force He-Man on us, then I demeand a She-Ra film. She was idol when I was wee young thing:)
I still covet her outfit…
JEFF, that’s so funny! I was watching the trailer, thinking, “Okay, will The Care Bears be next?” (I’m joking, of course.) But I do think that’s what’s going to happen.
I bet it will be on the same lines as “300.” But with even more homoerotism…. I’m in!
he-man please…
have you seen the fake trailer for the thundercats?
I wonder when Entertainment Weekly is going to change its name to Gayentainment Weekly. God forbid the entertainment industry do something to appeal to guys.
I thought the first MOTU movie was a terrible He-Man movie, but a pretty good New Gods movie.
This makes me want to cry. Hell, the Dolf Lundgren movie made me want to cry. He-Man actually had a decent story and would be good if told right, but considering…just let it go.