Courtney Howard // Film Critic
Much like BARBIE took an imaginative toy world and expanded it into full scale cinema that ranges the gamut of human emotions, Director Travis Knight’s MASTERS OF THE UNIVERSE aims to do the same, delivering fun entertainment to an all-ages audience. This contemporary iteration blends what we love about He-Man and his world – dangerously threatened by the villainous adversary Skeletor (Jared Leto), his henchwoman Evil-Lyn (Alison Brie) and his cadre of cronies – and turning into a gripping adventure. Adam (Nicholas Galitzine), along with pals Teela (Camila Mendes), Duncan/ Man-at-Arms (Idris Elba) and Sorceress (Morena Baccarin) are forced to battle against evil to win back their kingdom.
At the film’s recent virtual press conference, the stars and filmmakers gave us a few key details into the making of our new favorite space opera fantasy.
Travis Knight Made His Own He-Man Movie As a Kid
Director Knight said, “I made my own He-Man movie when I was a kid. I commandeered my dad’s video camera. I was He-Man, of course. I didn’t look the part. I had the haircut. It’s been a huge part of my childhood. To be able to tell this story with these characters that I’ve loved since I was a kid, it’s a very moving experience for me.” But don’t look for Knight’s original home video to the DVD extras. He laughed and said, “Nobody needs to see that!”
Nicholas Galitzine Got Emotional Reciting He-Man’s Catchphrase
Adam’s transformation into the buff superhero He-Man is not only physical, but emotional. “A lot of people are interested in the physical component. When he is transformed, those action sequences are fun. But Travis and I connected on how do we find the human of this larger than life character?” Knight gave credit to Galitzine, “Probably the most moving day was the day Nick did that incantation and transformed into He-Man for the first time. I was welling up. I got emotional.” Galitzine elucidates, “Doing that incantation on that day, I remember being really emotional as well. What does it mean to have the power? This is a guy who has been gaslit for most of his life. No one believes who he is, despite having an unbreakable sense of hope. That incantation is so many moments of rejection and earning the right to say that line. His hardships informed that powerful moment.” Probably the most moving day was the day Nick did that incantation and transformed into He-Man for the first time. I was welling up. I got emotional.”
Music is a Character
Daniel Pemberton’s score in this is – as is always the case with his scores – absolutely incredible, pulling from the grandiose, epic and operatic compositions and soundtrack cues from cinematic predecessors like FLASH GORDON and HIGHLANDER. Knight said, “I remember when I had my initial conversations with Daniel about a year and a half ago, for me, one of the big touchstones was the 80s FLASH GORDON soundtrack, which was famously scored by Queen. There was something fantastically theatrical about it. Like all Queen songs, there’s a real sincerity there. It’s emotionally complex, had a big, big heart and also sounded awesome. I couldn’t imagined a year later, we’d be sitting in Brian May’s home studio watching him record guitar solos for our score.” He continued, “The trippy thing was, I thought we’d get an hour or two hours with him. He was with us all day and night. It was almost midnight and he disappeared 10 minutes later with giant boxes of He-Man toys. It was his son’s He-Man toys and he knew all the characters. I couldn’t believe it.”
MASTERS OF THE UNIVERSE Feels Like Child’s Imagination Come To Life
That’s not to say the narrative is rudimentary in any way. There are a lot of complexities the filmmakers explore, from the characters interpersonal dynamics and their induvidual personal struggles. However, it does tap into that exhilarating feeling of play like we had when we were kids. Robbie Brenner, producer and president of Mattel Studios, said, “With toys, it’s something you play with; you bring it into your room and play with it for hours. You have the wonder, the whimsy, the play. And everyone has nostalgia for the figures and characters that make us dream of places that we want to go to. Working at Mattel, working with these brands is amazing and seeing it come to life and make sure it has the integrity of the original, and at the same time recreate it for new audiences.” Morena Baccarin, who plays Sorceress, couldn’t help but geek out on set. “Much like Travis, I spent a lot of time in my childhood playing He-Man and She-Ra with my brother. So internally, I had the history. I knew everything about them. So it wasn’t hard to drop into this world.”
Jared Leto’s Skeletor Looked Intimidating On Set Too
While Leto sports a CGI-enhanced skeleton head in the film, on-set, his look was quite different, but equally terrifying. Brie said, “He was in the full Skeletor… incredible Skeletor suit. The blue muscles, the giant boots, the cloak and hood…” Baccarin added, “He had a blood red face.” Brie picked up, “… the blood red face so he could still look terrifying to all of us. And he really did.”
Nicholas Galitzine Practiced His Transformation in the Shower
Galitzine had to practice how loud he’d say He-Man’s famous line – and there was no better place than his home shower. “It’s so synonymous with the IP. It can mount a lot of pressure. You want to beat people’s expectations a bit. Genuinely, I was quite reluctant to rehearse it too much at home. Generally, as an actor, I feel like if it’s too in me, it doesn’t feel raw, which is what it is at that time. We tried it a few different ways. It was the biggest soundstage I’ve ever been on in my life and it was looking out at a wave of different faces.” Camilla Mendes joked, “A shower,” to which Galitzine confessed, “Yeah. There was.”
The Crayon Drawings in Adam’s Room
Knight said, “We had an amazing art department. There were so many drawings. Basically, everyone was drawing at some point.”
The MASTERS OF THE UNIVERSE Sets Are Real
Galitzine was very impressed by the sets. “A lot can be said of what it is to perform next to green screen screen and pitfalls from the performance side of it. I never ever felt that on this job, because the sets that were made for us were truly… you could’ve been on location somewhere. You could chart a journey through these sets by [production designer] Guy Hendrix Diaz. That was immersive.” Producer Todd Black agreed, “It was breathtaking. There’s a lot of movies where the sets are fake, the costumes aren’t real. Here, that’s what we avoided. Everything you could touch and feel.” Alison Brie, who plays Evil-Lyn, gave props to the make-up department, “It was fun to get to set and see a new person in their costume. Even Hafthor Bjornsson as Goat Man, he was 8 hours in make-up every day. Even Moss Man! But they each are highlighted in this film and its fun for the fans. Every character is so unique.”
Baccarin added, “It was the castle, for me. You can walk through it, see the steps and see the sword resting where it should be. I took a picture and sent it to my brother and was like, ‘Can you believe this?!’” Brie said it was almost too accurate. “Some of the stairways and hallways were a little treacherous. Going up Skeletor’s Throne of Bones was a little precarious.” Galitzine added, “You don’t want to be walking backwards down the sets while Hafthor Bjornsson wields a 6-foot axe, which is what we did.” Mendes jumped in, “Alison had to do that in heels and a cape.”
MASTERS OF THE UNIVERSE is now playing.
