It was quite literally two and a half weeks ago that Mattel chief Mattel boss Ynon Kreiz spoke so highly of the potential of Masters of the Universe as a prospective franchise that he made the bold proclamation that it would be “as big as Marvel and DC” if handled correctly.
Those are some lofty aspirations for a reboot that had been stuck in development hell for more than 15 years and counting, and had roped in a cavalcade of writers, producers, directors, and potential stars during that period, none of whom could even get the damn thing in front of cameras and call action.
For a while, things were going swimmingly with The Lost City directors Adam and Aaron Nee steering the ship from behind the camera, and Kyle Allen even cast as He-Man, but now it’s back to square one all over again after Netflix decided that despite spending $30 million on development and pre-production already, Masters of the Universe wasn’t worth the time, effort, and hassle.
Let’s not forget that this is the same Netflix that thought spending upwards of $200 million the banal Red Notice, entirely forgettable The Gray Man, and catastrophic comic book adaptation Jupiter’s Legacy were worthwhile investments, and yet the company has come to the conclusion that reinventing He-Man is too much of a tall order.
At this stage, the Dark Universe has proven to be more successful than Masters of the Universe because it actually managed to make a movie before imploding, so that Marvel and DC talk has aged like milk in an instant.