Masters of the Universe Star Camila Mendes Talks Humor & Growth

Camila Mendes talked to TMS about crafting Teela’s character in Masters of the Universe, pump-up songs, and more in  her most recent interview.

Masters of the Universe rides into theaters this weekend, and we’ve spoken to some of the people behind the film. The Mary Sue talked about all the pulse-pounding action sequences with Camila Mendes. In our interview, the actress reflected on her time in Eternia.

“I think Teela’s relationship to her father was such an important part of figuring out who she is,” Mendes began. “That traumatic moment that you see at the beginning informs who she becomes and shapes her as a human being. It explains why she has such a tough outer shell.”

“So much so, that when Adam comes back to Eternia, I think she’s reminded of this little girl inside of her who is more playful and empathetic,” she observed. “And, a little softer. Yeah, my favorite parts of playing Teela were exploring that dynamic between her and her father. And then, that relationship between her and Adam.”

We also had to go into the delightful needle-drops in Masters of the Universe. “The Man” by The Killers comes up pretty early in our conversation. But, Mendes has an idea of what an empowering song looks like for Teela. 

Mendes told us, “I do know that ‘Birds of a Feather’ was like her theme song to me. That was a song that got me into Teela’s mindset. I know that sounds like a softer song than what Teela feels like. But,  it felt like what Teela’s internal life felt like.”

Camila Mendes on Teela in Masters of the Universe

During a lot of Masters of the Universe, Teela is basically an audience surrogate. Whenever something wild happens, the warrior is speaking for all of us when she asks, “what is happening right now?”

Talking about that dynamic, Mendes clearly relished getting to play to the audience. Teela knows some of this stuff is wild, and the actress probably felt the same way as it was all unfolding in front of her.

“I think in hindsight. But, in the moment? I just wanted to goof around with everyone else,” she said of some of the fantastical moments in the film. “I get so jealous of Nic [Nicholas Galitzine] because Adam gets such a silly character. Especially, before he becomes He-Man.”

“He’s such a goofy character. And, he got to play so much with all the improv,” Mendes recalled. “It’s the same thing with Idris [Elba] playing Duncan. Especially when Duncan’s not doing so well. Those are both really fun characters to play. And, I was always playing the straight serious character who was tired of all the b*******.”

“I was very envious of my co-stars for getting to have more fun with their characters,” she smiled.

Masters of the Universe is out today in theaters!

(featured image: MGM)

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