Summary
- The live-action Masters of the Universe movie stars, Nicholas Galitzine and Camila Mendes, are getting in shape for their roles with the help of strongman Hafthor Bjornsson.
- The new film may take a more serious tone, and potential changes to He-Man’s origin story are generating buzz among fans.
- With a 2026 release date set, the film’s casting choices and dedication of the stars suggest a promising adaptation of the iconic franchise.
The upcoming live-action Masters of the Universe reboot movie project is still more than a year away from release, but the film’s main stars are already in He-Man-worthy shape alongside one massive co-star in some new photos.
While the Masters of the Universe franchise has remained widely relevant over the decades and expanded its multimedia offerings with each passing year, the franchise hasn’t seen a proper foray into live-action since the late 1980s. With that particular installment in the franchise being largely critically panned, there’s been a lot of interest in the upcoming live-action reboot of the franchise, which has been in development hell for almost two decades but has recently come up green for a 2026 release window. The film has started filling out its cast with talented stars, most notably Nicholas Galitzine taking on the leading role as He-Man and Camila Mendes as Teela. There’s still a lot for fans to discover about the project, but Galitzine promised a change of tone in the new Masters of the Universe.
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While the more serious Masters Of The Universe tone choice is the correct one, the stars at the head of the project are also going through their own awesome change of tone: muscle tone, that is. In a picture uploaded by Film Updates on X, both Galitzine and Mendez can be seen posing at the gym with Game of Thrones favorite Hafthor Bjornsson (who has also been cast as Goat Man in the upcoming Masters of the Universe reboot), and it’s clear that they’ve all been hard at work preparing for their parts in the film. While they’re appropriately dressed in workout clothes for the occasion, both Galitzine and Mendez can already be seen sporting their characters’ distinct hairstyles and colors. This, alongside the amazing progress they’ve both made working out for the roles, makes it easy to see them in character even from this casual picture. As for Bjornsson, he’s looked more than ready for a Masters of the Universe role for multiple uninterrupted decades now, and he certainly hasn’t started slacking yet.
The three stars look great in this casual BTS pic, and they’re guaranteed to look even better when all the costumes, makeup, lighting, and post-production come together for the complete project. Without making too many assumptions, it would be fair to say that things are on the right track in terms of the main stars looking the part. The casting was already pretty good, and they’ve gone even further to prove that they were the right choice for this project. This will probably stay true for the rest of the talented cast, so fan attention will likely fall more on the film’s plot. It’s been strongly suggested that the upcoming Masters of the Universe reboot may feature a big change to He-Man’s origin that sees Prince Adam sent to Earth and separated from his iconic Power Sword before eventually regaining it and being transported back to Eternia, where the real action takes place. There are no concrete details on whether this is official or what the thought process behind the approach is, so that might be a more pressing concern for fans who like to follow along on production news going forward.
The physical training is just one of many aspects of the movie that fans can look forward to getting a look at in the lead-up to the film’s 2026 release. If the film does take the new origin route, then Galitzine’s work at the gym means that fans might get to see He-Man make one of the best transformations in the Masters Of The Universe franchise in the upcoming reboot. While it’s still up in the air how things will fare at the box office, this is certainly a good early indication of the sort of attitude and dedication that the stars attached are putting into their roles.
The live-action Masters of the Universe is currently set for theatrical release on June 5, 2026.
Masters of the Universe
- Release Date
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June 6, 2026
- Director
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Travis Knight
- Writers
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Chris Butler, Aaron Nee, Adam Nee, Dave Callaham
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Source: Film Updates/X