It looks like the long-in-development Masters of the Universe live-action movie might finally come to fruition. Per The Hollywood Reporter, Amazon MGM Studios has given the film a June 5, 2026 release date and is planning a worldwide theatrical release for the iconic property.
Travis Knight (Kubo and the Two Strings) takes the helm as the director for the planned adaptation of the Mattel toy property. Knight previously had success directing popular toy action figure property with Hasbro’s Transformers live-action film spinoff, Bumblebee. To date, it’s still the best-reviewed film of the franchise and the only one with a certified fresh rating at Rotten Tomatoes with a 75% critic score.
TRAVIS KNIGHT’S MASTERS OF THE UNIVERSE MOVIE IN THE WORKS FOR A JUNE 2026 RELEASE IN THEATERS
Travis Knight is directing from a script from his previous LAIKA Studios collaborator Chris Butler (Kubo and the Two Strings, ParaNorman, Missing Link). Mattel Films’ Robbie Brenner, Escape Artists’ Todd Black, Jason Blumenthal, and Steve Tisch are producing the project.
This will be a reimagining of the popular toy property. The storyline features a young 10-year-old Prince Adam who crash lands on Earth in a spaceship after being separated from the magical Power Sword, which is his only link to his home in Eternia. After discovering the sword 20 years later, Prince Adam is taken back across space to defend his home planet against the evil forces of Skeletor. To defeat his evil foe, Adam will have to uncover the mysteries of the past and become He-Man: the most powerful man in the Universe!
The live-action Masters of the Universe reboot has undergone many starts and stops over the last 20 years. It’s gone through multiple studios, directors, and writers. At one point, the film was set up at Sony. It then moved to Netflix. However, the film never got off the ground. The project then found a home at Amazon MGM. More recently, Aaron and Adam Nee were attached to the project, and they were the ones who reportedly brought the original draft of the movie to Amazon MGM. However, it seems now the property is finally ready to take sword in hand with director Knight and writer Butler on board.
Masters of the Universe debuted with a popular line of action figures in 1982. The toy line gave kids a deep and intricate fantasy lore and mythology. In 1983, the action figures received the beloved He-Man and the Masters of the Universe animated series from Filmation. It would eventually spawn the spinoff toy line and cartoon, She-Ra: Princess of Power, featuring the adventures of He-Man/Adam’s sister, She-Ra/Adora.
The first live-action movie based on the property was released in 1987. The film starred Dolph Lundgren as He-Man and Frank Langella as Skeletor. The film was a box office disappointment, but it’s continued to endure an ardent fan following from the Masters of the Universe fanbase.
The Masters of the Universe property has received many modern reboots and animated updates over the years. More recently, Kevin Smith oversaw the animated Masters of the Universe: Revelation and Masters of the Universe: Revolution animated shows on Netflix. There was also a CG-animated reboot series, He-Man and the Masters of the Universe on Netflix as well. Even She-Ra received a beloved animated reboot with She-Ra and the Princesses of Power on the streamer. The series ran for multiple seasons and 52 episodes.
It’s good to hear that Amazon MGM Studios is already committing to a theatrical release. That appears to suggest that they have faith in the project and the creative team of Knight and Butler. Amazon MGM Studios didn’t even give the Roadhouse remake a theatrical release earlier this year.
While it looks like the film still needs to undergo casting and pre-production phases, it looks like Masters of the Universe fans will soon finally get the opportunity to see their hero in theaters once more. The film looks closer than ever to happening now that it has an actual release date for theaters. Other films due out in June 2026 include Toy Story 5 from Disney and Pixar and a new project from Everything Everywhere All at Once filmmakers Daniel Kwan and Daniel Scheinert.
What do you think of the news? Are you looking forward to the new live-action Masters of the Universe? Who are your favorite members of the Masters and Skeletor’s Evil Warriors? Who should play Skeletor and He-Man? Let us know your thoughts about the news on The Illuminerdi’s social media.
SOURCE: The Hollywood Reporter
