Will Masters of the Universe Reboot Have The Power To Make He-Man Cool Again?

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Let’s be honest here, I’m a She-Ra kind of gal but He-Man is certainly one of those 80s icons I appreciate (and not only for his awesome dance moves). But like most beloved childhood franchises, He-Man and the Masters of the Universe is prime for a reboot and it just so happens to already be in the works. G.I. Joe: Retaliation director Jon M. Chu is taking up the Sword of Grayskull. 

From what we know so far, the new film will be based mainly on Mattel’s original toy line and not the 1983 animated He-Man and the Masters of the Universe, the Gary Goddard-directed 1987 Masters of the Universe film starring Dolph Lundgren, or the 2002 animated update. So that means they can do just about anything with it. Not like that wouldn’t have been the case anyway but, you know, sky’s the limit and all.

In case you’re not familiar with his work, Chu is also responsible for Step Up 2 and Step Up 3D, and the documentary Justin Bieber: Never Say Never. I can honestly say I’ve never seen any of his work and thanks to G.I. Joe: Retaliation being delayed “to convert it to 3-D” (*cough*sure*cough*), I won’t be seeing any of it soon.

“Sony Pictures and Escape Artists have attempted to launch the project several times based on a script by Alex Litvak and Mike Finch, entitled Grayskull,” writes The Hollywood Reporter. “Escape Artists partners Todd BlackJason Blumenthal and Steve Tisch are producing.”

No word on whether the project will continue from that or start fresh. It’s interesting timing considered we just reported on DreamWorks Animation purchasing Classic Media, a deal which included the rights to Filmation animated series. Could we get a live-action He-Man and an animated He-Man film at the same time? I wouldn’t put it past Hollywood.

Regardless, what are your thoughts on He-Man coming to the big screen again? And, prematurely, who could you see playing him? How about Karen Gillan for Teela?

(via The Hollywood Reporter)

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Jill Pantozzi
Jill Pantozzi is a pop-culture journalist and host who writes about all things nerdy and beyond! She’s Editor in Chief of the geek girl culture site The Mary Sue (Abrams Media Network), and hosts her own blog “Has Boobs, Reads Comics” (TheNerdyBird.com). She co-hosts the Crazy Sexy Geeks podcast along with superhero historian Alan Kistler, contributed to a book of essays titled “Chicks Read Comics,” (Mad Norwegian Press) and had her first comic book story in the IDW anthology, “Womanthology.” In 2012, she was featured on National Geographic’s "Comic Store Heroes," a documentary on the lives of comic book fans and the following year she was one of many Batman fans profiled in the documentary, "Legends of the Knight."