Yo, how did I miss this news from a couple of weeks ago? I just read that director Jon M. Chu was in talks with Sony to take on a live-action movie adaptation of Masters of the Universe -- yes, He-Man: 'G.I. Joe 2' Director in Talks to Helm 'Masters of the Universe.'
Jon Chu is best known for his work on the Step Up movies, and as creator of hit dance web series The LXD. Most recently, he's been busy with directing duties on the big budget action sequel G.I. Joe: Retaliation.
Of course, there's already been a Masters of Universe movie. I'm talking about the awful 1987 adaptation starring Dolph Lundgren, which happens to be one of my favorite terrible movies of all time:
The film would be the second adaptation of the material, after Gary Goddard's 1987 film starring Dolph Lundgren, which notably flopped at the box office. 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. Escape Artists partners Todd Black, Jason Blumenthal and Steve Tisch are producing.First G.I. Joe, then He-Man. Jon M. Chu is kind of on a roll with the 1980s toy/cartoon franchises. But I gotta ask -- do we really need a Masters of the Universe movie? And could a She-Ra movie be far behind? More here: Jon M. Chu In 'Masters Of The Universe' Talks.
Although the 1987 film brought the franchise's heroes to Earth, Masters of the Universe takes place on an alternate world called Eternia, where a prince named Adam has a sword that transforms him into the musclebound hero He-Man. The franchise premiered in 1983 with a cartoon series and an action figure line and remains a beloved property for generations of genre fans.