A reboot of “Masters of the Universe” has been in the works since 2007, with the rights going from one studio to the other and filmmakers like Jon M. Chu, McG, and David S. Goyer all slated to direct it at various points.
Last year it was reported that Netflix had axed its take on the “Masters of the Universe” live-action film even after spending millions of dollars in development for it. The streamer already produced a series of animated TV shows based on the popular Mattel toy property, including (the very successful and acclaimed) “She-Ra and the Princesses of Power,” Kevin Smith’s adult reboot “Masters of the Universe: Revelation,” and the anime-inspired “He-Man and the Masters of the Universe.” Now, in the wake of the monster success of “Barbie,” we’ll see if Mattel can finally get this movie off the ground.
There’s only been one live-action film version of the toy line so far. It was simply titled “Masters of the Universe” and starred Dolph Lundgren as He-Man. In 2015, /Film put together a massive oral history of that movie, which you’ll just have to read to believe.