Kellan Lutz, Kyle Allen, Noah Centineo, McG, the Nee Brothers, Jon M. Chu…these are just a few of the names who have been part of various attempts at a Masters of the Universe movie. And that doesn’t include the many studios who have given it a shot. Warner Bros. had the rights, before giving up and Sony took over for years. They eventually quit, and Netflix swooped in. But when their attempts failed, Amazon/MGM was next and they are still trying to make it happen, and they may have just found their director.
Deadline reports that Laika CEO and Bumblebee director Travis Knight is the top contender to direct Masters of the Universe. If it all goes through, Knight will work from a script by Chris Butler. The two previously collaborated on ParaNorman, Kubo and the Two Strings, and Missing Link. They’re currently developing Wildwood, Laika’s latest stop-motion film arriving in 2025.
Masters of the Universe is probably best known for the 1980s animated series and action figures featuring He-Man. The franchise was also turned into a terrible live-action movie with Dolph Lundgren in 1987.
I kinda feel like the time has passed for He-Man on the big screen. Netflix is doing awesome things with it in the realm of animation with Masters of the Universe: Revelation and Masters of the Universe: Revolution which debuted last month.