Masters of the Universe Review

June 20, 2026 at 3:37pm
By Jason Stettner

Masters of the Universe is yet another attempt to bring He-Man and friends to the center stage again. I’m not sure if they’ll necessarily achieve that with this iteration but I certainly had a fun time with this one. It’s a genuinely enjoyable experience that I equate to someone taking those old action figures and slamming them together a bunch over the course of a flimsily narrative.

It’s a shame actually that the story lags so badly behind the visuals and performances on screen. Masters of the Universe has a really great cast and they nailed the vibe of what this IP should be all about. At the same time the story just skips along with random cuts and then just ends sort of. It’s very awkward in approach and that’s such a shame as it starts out so strong.

The whole concept of being in a magical world, Adam (Nicholas Galitzine) then being stuck on Earth and dealing with being perceived as crazy while amongst the corporate world. To then being sent back to the magical world due to various events and having to deal with a long time away. The whole fallout of the situation, was a lot to work with.

It then sort of just goes along and ends, a real shame. It’s also a really funny story and the charisma of the various characters was so good. It’ll be a shame if they don’t iterate upon it as there’s something really good here. I do ponder the IP’s relevance in the modern era however. It’s sort of something your grandfather might take you to at this point, maybe dad.

There was some seriously good talent here. Jared Leto gives the performance of a lifetime as Skeletor, dude is evil and loves it. Camila Mendes was really good as Teela and I enjoyed Idris Elba’s drunken washed up Duncan. Then on another front the supporting characters were lots of fun. A good little shout for Evil-Lyn being delightful from Alison Brie as well.

The cast is good here, and they work with the material well. I just wish the story didn’t skip along cutting out individuals randomly and having portions where two characters engage while everyone stands watching awkwardly. The visuals in the film were about as good as this type of movie could be.

For the most part a very believable fantasy world with cool sci-fi characters that match the tone of He-Man well and some awkward CGI moments which were to be expected. The humor was good, I had some laughs and I liked the chemistry of folks involved here as well. A fun surprise or two as well from the old guard as to say.

The Conclusion

Masters of the Universe was a genuinely fun movie to watch, it felt like someone got to smash the action figures together on the big screen and that brought a smile to my face. At the same time the plot was sort of weak and or jumbled. It skipped along, not making sense at times and that was a shame as everything else here came together well. It was funny, charming and the performances were great.

There was some nice action and they explained things very well making the world believable. It’s just that some elements, an important element such as the story didn’t really come together. Still, I’d love to see this iteration continue or them take a stab at She-Ra in this style as that would be entertaining. I enjoyed Masters of the Universe, it was fun. Not necessarily a great film but I felt good watching it.

Masters of the Universe Review at Theather with Standard Viewing
Screening Provided by Amazon MGM

Rating Overall: 5.6