Sorry He-Man fans! Netflix just killed the live-action Masters of the Universe film after spending over $30 million dollars on its development.
He-Man and The Masters of the Universe has found a fairly decent home at Netflix in recent years, with no less than 3 animated shows from the franchise finding a home on the streamer. It was an obvious choice for Mattel to go to them with a pitch for a live-action film. However, after $30 million and six years of development, Netflix has axed the project due to the filmmaking duo The Nee Brothers asking for a $180 million budget, which Netflix did not feel comfortable committing to.
Little is known about this canceled He-Man and The Masters of the Universe project despite Netflix’s investment. Noah Centineo (Who played Atom Smasher in Black Adam) was attached to play the titular He-Man before departing the project over scheduling differences. Kyle Allen (The In Between) then landed the role, with much of that $30 million seemingly used to keep him attached to the stalled project. The film was originally set to film in February 2024 before getting the axe.
He-Man Gets The Axe
Based on the Mattel franchise of the same name, Masters of the Universe centers on the conflict between He-Man, the secret identity of Prince Adam, and the villainous sorcerer Skeletor on the planet Eternia. The franchise has previously spawned an animated TV series that ran from 1983 to 1985 and a 1987 live-action film starring Dolph Lundgren.
Masters of the Universe will be directed by The Nee Brothers from a script written by Iron Man writers Art Marcum and Matt Holloway. Sony’s Matthew Milam was set to oversee the project for Netflix with Mattel serving as a partner on the film. Escape Artists’ Todd Black, Jason Blumenthal, and Steve Tisch are producing alongside Franklin Entertainment’s DeVon Franklin.
Masters of the Universe was canceled by Netflix in July of 2023. Mattel is currently shopping around for a new distributor.
Source: Variety
