{"id":1203,"date":"2026-06-04T17:08:21","date_gmt":"2026-06-04T17:08:21","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/uspropertymoves.com\/?p=1203"},"modified":"2026-06-04T17:08:21","modified_gmt":"2026-06-04T17:08:21","slug":"the-first-masters-of-the-universe-muscled-into-theaters-in-1987","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/uspropertymoves.com\/?p=1203","title":{"rendered":"The First \u2018Masters of the Universe\u2019 Muscled Into Theaters in 1987"},"content":{"rendered":"
\n<\/p>\n
\n

\n\tNearly four decades before its big-screen revival, Masters of the Universe <\/em>overcame a string of setbacks to power its way into theaters. <\/p>\n

Read more Constance Zimmer on \u2018Love Story,\u2019 Personal Grief and Why Hollywood Needs More Women Over 50<\/a><\/p>\n

\n\tKnown for Barbie but struggling with action figures, Mattel launched the property in 1982 with a toy line that included the sword-wielding, muscle-clad He-Man and bony nemesis Skeletor. To capitalize on the toys\u2019 popularity, animated series He-Man and the Masters of the Universe<\/em> debuted a year later, centering on the two leads battling over planet Eternia and its Castle Grayskull, where Prince Adam transforms into the powerful He-Man.<\/p>\n

\n\tCannon Group and Mattel began working on a live-action film with a script from Muppet Show<\/em> writer David Odell. Director Gary Goddard dealt with constant budget issues and recalled in 2015, \u201cBehind the scenes, it was pretty hairy, with regards to the money not being there.\u201d Castmember Barry Livingston tells The Hollywood Reporter<\/em> about Goddard\u2019s relationship with the producers, \u201cBy the end of shoot, which was dragging on and going way over budget and schedule, there was a lot of tension. I sensed that the director was under a lot of pressure to get it finished.\u201d <\/p>\n

\n\tStarring as He-Man was Dolph Lundgren, the Sweden-born martial arts expert known for portraying Ivan Drago in 1985\u2019s Rocky IV<\/em>. The performer was still perfecting his English at the time, and his garbled delivery led Goddard to push for a different actor to dub lines, although budget limitations prevented it. \u201cI felt very on-the-spot,\u201d Lundgren tells THR<\/em>. <\/p>\n

\n\tFrank Langella played Skeletor, and the Tony-winning actor would at times grow frustrated with long days spent in heavy prosthetic makeup. \u201cSome nights, they wouldn\u2019t even get anything done [with him],\u201d Livingston recalls. \u201cOnce I just saw him so fed up, he just peeled all that shit off his face and just said, \u2018I\u2019m going home.’\u201d<\/p>\n

Read more No Superheroes? No Problem. Inside the Making of \u2018Wonder Man\u2019<\/a><\/p>\n

\nMasters of the Universe<\/em> hit theaters on Aug. 7, 1987. With limited marketing, it collected $17 million ($50 million today), failing to turn a profit. The franchise returns to theaters June 5 with Amazon MGM\u2019s reboot that stars Nicholas Galitzine and Jared Leto. <\/p>\n

\n\tLundgren, who cameos in the reboot, calls the original\u2019s release \u201cdisappointing\u201d but proudly adds that Masters<\/em> \u201chas become one of my most popular movies.\u201d<\/p>\n

\nThis story appeared in the June 3 issue of The Hollywood Reporter magazine. Click here to subscribe<\/em>.<\/p>\n

Read more Netflix Renews \u2018Devil May Cry\u2019 for Final Season<\/a><\/p>\n<\/div>\n<\/div>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"

Dolph Lundgren brought Mattel\u2019s He-Man action figure to life, but the 1987 Masters of the Universe movie flopped at the box office before the reboot.<\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":1,"featured_media":1202,"comment_status":"open","ping_status":"closed","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"footnotes":""},"categories":[1],"tags":[1078,1079,891,211,213,951,215],"class_list":["post-1203","post","type-post","status-publish","format-standard","has-post-thumbnail","hentry","category-interesting","tag-dolph-lundgren","tag-he-man","tag-hollywood-flashback","tag-jared-leto","tag-masters-of-the-universe","tag-mattel","tag-nicholas-galitzine"],"yoast_head":"\nThe First \u2018Masters of the Universe\u2019 Muscled Into Theaters in 1987 - US Property Moves<\/title>\n<meta name=\"robots\" content=\"index, follow, max-snippet:-1, max-image-preview:large, max-video-preview:-1\" \/>\n<link rel=\"canonical\" href=\"https:\/\/uspropertymoves.com\/?p=1203\" \/>\n<meta property=\"og:locale\" content=\"en_US\" \/>\n<meta property=\"og:type\" content=\"article\" \/>\n<meta property=\"og:title\" content=\"The First \u2018Masters of the Universe\u2019 Muscled Into Theaters in 1987 - 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