We all have our Masters of the Universe. Whether it’s the original cartoon, the mini-comics from the toys, or the more modern Netflix versions, every generation has its entry point to He-Man, Skeletor, and the world of Eternia. Of course, another major one is the 1987 film starring Dolph Lundgren and Frank Langella. One fan of that film is Travis Knight, the director of the new Masters of the Universe, who made sure to weave references to all eras of Masters of the Universe into the film, even the original 1987 film.
“There have been so many different iterations of Masters of the Universe, and there is dramatic inconsistency within it,” Knight told io9 and other journalists last month at CinemaCon. “Like you could follow one form of the mythology [and] it varies from a different one. And so, in the end, we decided what worked best for our movie and [to] not worry about those things that didn’t fit within that version of it. But part of it was I wanted to honor a lot of these different eras of the stories. And a big part of that was the 1987 movie.”
So how, specifically, did he do that? Well, first and foremost, cameos. Both Karg and Pigface, characters introduced as minions of Skeletor in the 1987 version, appear in this movie. Second is costumes. “Teela’s costume is an example of [a reference to 1987],” Knight said. “It’s a combination of that classic one-piece that Teela wore in the cartoon and the kind of gunslinger costume that Chelsea [Field] wore in the film.”
There’s also some influence from the iconic Frank Langella Skeletor performance in Jared Leto’s version of the character. “Frank Langella, I mean, he gave such a great performance in that film,” Knight said. “Many think the best part of that film, and he’s oftentimes talked about how that’s his favorite character that he ever played. For good reason. I mean, he’s a ton of fun. He’s just chewing the scenery the whole time. So there was that aspect of that character. And so in the way we shaped Skeletor, it was looking at the origins, the Alan Oppenheimer version, the Frank Langella version, and then trying to find our own version that felt true to this movie.”
There’s one more major connection, too, but it’s a tiny bit of a spoiler, so let’s drop one of these.
As revealed in the film’s press notes (and by the fact he showed up at the premiere), Dolph Lundgren himself, the original live-action He-Man, appears in the new Masters of the Universe. He “shares a scene alongside [Nicholas] Galitzine’s Adam as a surprisingly insightful weightlifter at the local gym,” according to the notes. “It’s kind of daunting that it’s been 38 to 39 years since I was last on Eternia,” Lundgren added. “It feels really cool to be back, though.”
Apparently, Lundgren was always open to a cameo, but the original idea didn’t quite mesh with his idea of it, so he worked with the team to change it. “The original cameo was something different. It wasn’t as much of a role model,” Lundgren said. “If I was going to be part of it, I wanted to make it special and make it something where the young He-Man could take the older He-Man’s words of wisdom with him, which he does now. And the director and producer liked my idea, so that’s what ended up in the script. ‘The muscles don’t make the man, kid.’ That’s what I’ve learned in my life.”
What we’ve learned in our lives is that the new Masters of the Universe comes to theaters on June 5, and it is aiming to honor not just new fans of the franchise but fans of all eras.
Want more io9 news? Check out when to expect the latest Marvel, Star Wars, and Star Trek releases, what’s next for the DC Universe on film and TV, and everything you need to know about the future of Doctor Who.
