Amazon MGM Studios’ long-awaited live-action revival of Masters of the Universe drew overwhelmingly enthusiastic responses at its world premiere Monday night at the TCL Chinese Theater in Los Angeles, with early reactions singling out Nicholas Galitzine’s performance and Jared Leto’s scene-stealing turn as Skeletor as the film’s twin standout elements.
Director Travis Knight — whose credits include Bumblebee and Kubo and the Two Strings — helms the adaptation of the Mattel franchise, which opens wide on June 5. The film follows Prince Adam of Eternia, crash-landed on Earth as a child and raised as the ordinary Adam Glenn, who reunites with his Sword of Power and returns to save his homeland from Skeletor’s rule. Adam must join forces with Teela, played by Camila Mendes, and Idris Elba’s Man-at-Arms to embrace his true destiny. Alison Brie plays Evil-Lyn, Kristen Wiig voices Roboto, and Morena Baccarin portrays the Sorceress.
The reaction from premiere attendees — critics’ full reviews remain embargoed — was strikingly positive, with several writers calling it a genuine surprise. Journalist Perri Nemiroff described it as “bound to be one of the biggest surprises of 2026,” adding that she went in skeptical and came out converted. The word repeated most across posts was “fun.” One writer called it “a hell of a lot of fun,” praising Galitzine for bringing “sweetness” to the role and framing his He-Man as “a fascinating take on masculinity.”
Leto, whose casting had generated pre-release skepticism among fans, appears to have silenced doubters. One critic wrote that it “pains me to say it, but Jared Leto is genuinely unrecognizable and very, VERY good,” adding that Skeletor and Alison Brie’s Evil-Lyn “steal the whole damn thing.” Dissenting voices existed but were few. One attendee called the film “a mess” tonally in its first half before conceding it “finds its footing” by the end.
Courtney Howard noted that Knight “has a genuine reverence for all the incarnations of the He-Man character” and that Easter eggs were “incorporated with craft and care.” Several reactions compared the film favorably to the early Marvel era, with one writer likening it structurally to the first Thor.
The franchise dates to 1982, when Mattel released the original toy line, followed by the Filmation animated series the following year. The 1987 live-action film starring Dolph Lundgren bombed at the box office, and the property spent decades in development limbo before Amazon acquired the rights in 2024. Daniel Pemberton composed the score, which multiple attendees called out specifically as a highlight.
