Masters of the Universe (2026): Review

 A fun, if far from perfect movie, that is highlighted by brilliant performances from Jared Leto and Alison Brie.

The story line in this film was very cheesy. It definitely felt like they were trying to make it cheesy, and trying to make it feel like an episode from the original show. The humor at times was hit or miss, but man when it was on it had me dying of laughter. I also really liked how much heart they put into this movie, I was shocked and I really liked it. Travis Knight gave it a cheesy 80s vibe, which I can respect. The screenplay at times was pretty weak though, except in the case of Skeletor and Evil-Lyn.

The acting in this movie was good. Nicholas Galitzine was decent as a younger version of He-Man, but I think he would have done a much better job if he had a bit of a tighter script at times. Camila Mendes made the most of what she had, but sometimes her dialogue needed improvement. Idris Elba gave a good performance as well, but it really wasn't a groundbreaking new role for him. Alison Brie was the 2nd best part of the movie, she absolutely knocked it out of the park as Evil-Lyn, her facial expressions stole the show also. Jared Leto's performance as Skeletor was easily the best part of the movie. He was very good at being comedic and also very serious at the time, easily one of Jared Leto's best performances and I hope he returns if they do a sequel (And I would not at all be opposed to seeing Leto play Cobra Commander in a future G.I. Joe movie).

The visuals and action sequences in this movie were great. The visuals never looked bad, and I was pleased with how good Skeletor looked. The action sequences were made better by the amazing musical score in this movie as well.

They have let plenty of room open for a sequel. I know the film flopped at the box office, but Amazon Prime has talked about being open to releasing a sequel straight to Prime Video, which I would be 100% fine with. I just hope they develop He-Man and Teela's relationship a little bit more, as the 2 actors did have a lot of good chemistry. While I want Skeletor to come back, I would honestly prefer if Evil-Lyn is more front and center as the main villain, as she has a lot of potential as the main villain in a sequel. Either way, Skeletor and Evil-Lyn need to be the main villains in a sequel.

Overall, Masters of the Universe is what it is. A fun throwback to the 80s, and while it suffers at times, it is saved by its heart, visuals, musical score, action scenes, and stellar performances from Jared Leto and Alison Brie.

Out of 4 stars I would give it...

3 out of 4 stars