- 9 hours ago
The cast and team behind the upcoming reboot 'Masters of the Universe' arrived in London for the UK Premiere, led by He-Man himself, Nicholas Galitzine.
He was joined on the red carpet by his co-stars Camila Mendes, James Wilkinson, director Travis Knight, the band The Darkness, Queen legend Brian May, as well as Mattel CEO Ynon Kreiz.
They spoke about creating this new blockbuster adaptation, how many pull-ups can Alison Brie can do, Jared Leto's Skeletor, and compared the hopes for this film with the last Mattel toy movie, 'Barbie.'
From Sony Pictures Releasing, 'Masters of the Universe' is out in UK & Irish cinemas from Friday 5th June 2026. Report by Burtonj. Like us on Facebook at http://www.facebook.com/itn and follow us on Twitter at http://twitter.com/itn
He was joined on the red carpet by his co-stars Camila Mendes, James Wilkinson, director Travis Knight, the band The Darkness, Queen legend Brian May, as well as Mattel CEO Ynon Kreiz.
They spoke about creating this new blockbuster adaptation, how many pull-ups can Alison Brie can do, Jared Leto's Skeletor, and compared the hopes for this film with the last Mattel toy movie, 'Barbie.'
From Sony Pictures Releasing, 'Masters of the Universe' is out in UK & Irish cinemas from Friday 5th June 2026. Report by Burtonj. Like us on Facebook at http://www.facebook.com/itn and follow us on Twitter at http://twitter.com/itn
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LifestyleTranscript
00:00You know, you kind of feel a bit like a fraud.
00:01I bought that for him.
00:02Unaided, like, she just whacked them out.
00:04It was incredible.
00:05He absolutely chews the scenery.
00:07I'm so, um...
00:10Sorry, you can start the interview.
00:13I have the power!
00:25Hey, how you doing?
00:27Oh, good. How you feeling today?
00:28Fantastic. So good.
00:29Look at your face all over these posters over here.
00:31How does that feel today?
00:32It's a little bit strange.
00:34I mean, I used to work at a frozen yogurt store
00:38literally about 100 feet down that way.
00:41And so just being here with my movie is just very surreal.
00:46And look at us now, yogurt store.
00:47I know, I know.
00:48I love hearing about all the preparation,
00:50obviously, you guys had to do for this.
00:52You got in shape.
00:53But obviously, it's a very slow process.
00:55Yeah.
00:55How long into it did you check yourself in the mirror
00:57and think, oh, look at him. He's He-Man.
00:59You know, that's a very interesting point because, unlike He-Man,
01:03you know, I don't get to just raise a sword and transform.
01:06And really, for a long period of time, you don't feel like the character.
01:11You know, you kind of feel a bit like a fraud.
01:13And then, you know, you start the cutting process and all of the sort of,
01:17the muscles kind of come into definition.
01:19And really, you know, it wasn't until I went on set for the first time as He-Man
01:24and I spoke to Travis, who was just very overwhelmed.
01:28And, you know, our producers have had the rights to tell this story for 18 years.
01:32So this has been 18 years in the making and we kind of, we all had a very sort of
01:36emotional moment
01:37and that kind of solidified it for me.
01:39I love hearing about, obviously, it was an arduous journey to prepare for this as well.
01:42Yeah.
01:42What's the difference between Nicholas before He-Man and the Nicholas we are meeting today?
01:47Look, truthfully, I think it sounds very cliche, but just the knowingness that I could do it.
01:55Because, you know, you get given this incredible responsibility and, you know,
02:00you're assigned a trainer, a chef, a nutritionist, and you just have to kind of trust in the process.
02:05And like you say, it's a long, it's not something that happens quickly.
02:08And so just trusting that I was going to get there and, you know,
02:11if we're lucky enough to keep making these movies, then, yeah, I know I can do it.
02:28I overheard the high facts then and it actually has blown me away because I'm like,
02:31she is very striking.
02:32I know, I'm so, sorry, you can start the interview.
02:36Hey, welcome back to London.
02:39How long did you spend here for shooting the film?
02:41I was here for a total of seven months, I believe.
02:44Whoa.
02:45I mean, tell me what life is like in the UK for you.
02:48What do you love about us?
02:49I love the UK.
02:50I could see myself living here.
02:52I don't think I ever will because I just, I have too much of a life in LA.
02:57But I feel like the city works well with my way of life.
03:01I feel like I'm a city girl at heart.
03:04And, yeah, I just, I felt like it was like New York with more history.
03:09We'll take you any time, by all means.
03:11Obviously, you guys all had to get in shape for this film.
03:13So much time in the gym.
03:14But what is a skill or something that you can do now, which you couldn't do before,
03:19which you're going to take on for the rest of your career?
03:20What did this film teach you, do you think?
03:22Oh, my God.
03:23So many things.
03:24So many things.
03:25I learned so many types of kicks.
03:28I kind of learned boxing.
03:30Not like, I'm not like good at it.
03:31But like, that was something I fell in love with.
03:34Um, and just weightlifting.
03:35I think I fell in love with weightlifting.
03:37Because before I never really sought out gaining muscle.
03:41And now it's, I realize how addicting of a feeling it is.
03:45And being able to lift a lot of weight as a woman is very empowering.
03:49This film is maybe more dangerous is what I'm hearing.
03:51Yes, exactly.
03:52Thank you so much for your time.
03:53Enjoy tonight.
03:53Thanks a lot.
03:55So I'm going to choose to talk about Jared Leto, if I could.
03:58Yes.
03:59Tell me about some of the conversations that you had with him, developing his portrayal of
04:03this character.
04:04Did he come to you with a fully formed creation?
04:07Or did you kind of get that together?
04:09I guess one of the most amazing things about my collaboration with Jared was that he was
04:14a huge He-Man fan.
04:15I found so many closeted He-Man fans since I've been making this movie.
04:19He grew up with it.
04:20He loved it.
04:20And in fact, Skeletor was his favorite character.
04:23So he already knew everything there was to know about Skeletor.
04:26He knew this character was cool.
04:27He was weird.
04:28He was funny.
04:29He was scary.
04:30And he had a very distinctive voice and laugh.
04:32And he brought all of that to the process.
04:34Now we worked out like what that voice was going to sound like.
04:36We didn't want to do an impression of the cartoon.
04:38We wanted to find our own version of it.
04:40But I'm so incredibly proud of what Jared brought to the movie.
04:43He absolutely chews the scenery.
04:45He's so much fun to watch.
04:46And he's extraordinary.
04:47He's a villain for the ages.
04:48And I'm delighted with what we all came up with together.
04:58Thank you very much.
04:59Very quick question.
05:00Did you own this before this whole journey?
05:02Years.
05:03Many years before, yes.
05:04And now we can use it in an official capacity.
05:07How good is that?
05:07No.
05:07Now I finally...
05:08I bought that for him.
05:09Room full of people that appreciate it.
05:12First question, guys.
05:13For the darkness, before all of this happened,
05:16was He-Man and Master of the Universe
05:17ever a reference point for the darkness' aesthetics
05:20for a music video or anything?
05:21Was it ever mentioned before this?
05:22It was.
05:22I remember it was second only to Hulk the Slayer.
05:25Yeah.
05:27Which is always number one for these two.
05:29Well, Hulk the Slayer is like a movie that Dan and I grew up with,
05:33and that's swords and sorcery.
05:35I think when you categorize He-Man and Master of the Universe,
05:38it's actually swords and planets,
05:41which is combining, you know, the realms of science fiction and...
05:45I don't know, what would the other one be like?
05:47Just fantasy, I suppose.
05:48You know, medieval fantasy.
05:51So it hits both of the things that I think all of us really love in movies.
05:56You know, like, we're massive sci-fi-infused.
05:58That's why we always do videos that involve spaceships, you know.
06:02So to add that sort of sword element to it is really rewarding.
06:06Very awesome.
06:06And finally from me, guys.
06:08You can obviously see him down the carpet over there, Mr. Brian May.
06:11You're both working this film together.
06:12How much face time did you have with him?
06:14Is that a collaborative approach?
06:15What was the crossover there?
06:16Lots of late-night conversations, actually,
06:19because we have our own studio,
06:20so it's quite easy to do things remotely.
06:24But, yeah, he's...
06:26It was just brilliant when he came on board.
06:28We were already kind of well into the track,
06:31and then he was brought in to play on the soundtrack and the score,
06:35and then we kind of stole him from that to play on our track
06:39on the end credits.
06:40So it's all good.
06:41Not a bad guy to have to jump on at the last minute on a project, eh?
06:44Yeah, not bad.
06:45Not bad.
06:46Guys, enjoy tonight.
06:47Thanks so much for your time.
06:47I appreciate it.
06:48Cheers.
06:48Thanks a lot.
06:50James is going to be in a film with Idris Elba and Nicola Scaletti and everything.
06:53I know.
06:54I know.
06:54I love Jersey.
06:55I love going back to Jersey.
06:57I'm going back next week to see my mum and dad and my sister.
07:01And, yeah, like, I started acting in Jersey in the amateur dramatics, you know,
07:07like there's the Jersey Royal Opera House and the Jersey Arts Centre
07:10where I would do all of my after-school performances and things like that.
07:15And, yeah, like, it's amazing. It's really special coming from Jersey.
07:19How did you find, I don't know how much experience you had, sorry, with kind of the green screen
07:23and the CGI of it all.
07:25Is this kind of what, like, you know, the training prepares us for when you're asked to, like,
07:29pretend like there's a big monster next to you and it's just a tennis ball and a stick?
07:33There was so much of this stuff that was done practically.
07:35When you walk onto the set, like, 95% of the set is there.
07:40It was incredibly easy to immerse yourself in that world
07:43where the only green screen was, like, up at the top where it's just like, you know,
07:47maybe there's going to be a building there at some point.
07:49But we were immersed in that battlefield for real.
07:53And they also did a great job with, you know, some of my scenes.
07:57I whipped my neck around in one particular part.
08:00I did that for real. Like, my lower back was hurting by the end of that day.
08:04But, yeah, props to the CGI people as well because they did an incredible job.
08:08They brought Antonio to life.
08:10It's an exciting night to be in London because, obviously,
08:12on the red carpet with you at the moment is the darkness.
08:15Brian May is here and being plus and everything.
08:17Have you had a chance to have face time with any of these people yet?
08:19Are there still members of this film that you want to meet?
08:22Not yet. I'm a huge, huge fan of Queen.
08:23I grew up listening to their music.
08:25I know every single lyric of every single song they've ever written.
08:28I love We Will Rock You, the musical.
08:30What's up, bro?
08:33Yeah, so if I get a chance to say hello to Brian, that would make my day.
08:37And a word on our young lead over there who just went past you, Nicholas.
08:41How did you find collaborating with him?
08:43What did you learn about him from working with him?
08:44Nick's a legend. Like, he's the real deal.
08:49Like, he's like the classic Hollywood A-lister in a nutshell.
08:53He's a hard worker. He's kind.
08:56He's a great leader.
08:57Like, the work schedule he had to come in and still be able to crack jokes in between takes, hats
09:03off to him.
09:03He's amazing.
09:04I'm gonna guess you're a big lad.
09:06I reckon you and him were in the gym in the mornings at, like, 6 a.m.
09:08Is that kind of the right level?
09:10A little bit. Yeah, yeah.
09:10We were fortunate enough to have a gym sort of, like, next to the trailers.
09:14And that was kind of like our hangout point.
09:17So, not just Nick. All the boys were able to, you know, use it.
09:20And the ladies as well.
09:21I saw Alison Brie do ten full pull-ups.
09:26Unaided. Like, she just whacked them out. It was incredible.
09:28She learned that during her Ladies of Glow.
09:31Oh, yeah. I love that series.
09:32I remember watching her do it.
09:33I was like, I didn't know the girl from Community could do that.
09:36Yeah. Yeah.
09:37Oh, she's a well-rounded talent, is Alison Brie.
09:40Fingers crossed that Master of the Universe comes back.
09:42Hey, maybe a Mecha next spin-off series. Do you like that?
09:44Who knows? I won't say no to that. Absolutely.
09:47All right. Enjoy tonight. Thanks for your time. Appreciate you.
09:51Welcome to this massive event, which, obviously, you are the architect of, ultimately.
09:55How are we feeling before Master of the Universe is unleashed upon the world?
10:00Well, Master of the Universe is an epic action-adventure with a lot of humor and heart.
10:05But more than anything, it's fun and entertaining.
10:09And it will appeal to classic fans of the franchise from the 80s as well as new generation of fans.
10:15It's exciting.
10:16Obviously, Mattel struck gold with the Barbie movie a couple of years ago
10:20and it sparked this whole generation of, hopefully, successful films.
10:23Is Master of the Universe kind of the difficult second album in there?
10:27Like, is it the litmus test of how, hopefully, the rest of these Mattel films will do?
10:31Well, we know that not every movie will be the next Barbie in terms of box office.
10:36But it's the same approach of partnering with leading filmmakers, with innovators, with pioneers,
10:44and create something that will resonate in culture.
10:46And it's already a win for Mattel in terms of taking a brand that has been dormant for decades.
10:52And what we think will happen is a typical show between the pink world of Barbie
10:57and the vast world of Eternia, the diversity of genre and offering that we bring to the market.
11:05I'm so excited about so many of the films which are on the list to come,
11:09and some of the names attached to them as well.
11:11Can I ask you specifically about Barney?
11:15Because there's, what we think of Barney, and then I see the AOs attached to it, A24 attached to it
11:19as well.
11:20What was the direction behind that decision-making?
11:23Because it seems brave, but also I'm so excited for it.
11:26Exactly. The whole idea is to break convention.
11:28Yeah.
11:29Be original.
11:30Think of how we partnered with Greta Gerwig for Barbie.
11:33At the time, people would say, what is that about?
11:36And, of course, it's about breaking, grading something original and breaking convention.
11:40And this same approach for Masters of the Universe and Barney and other brands and other projects that we're developing.
11:48I think it's going to work perfectly. Congratulations.
11:50And good luck with the launch of this as well.
11:52Good to meet you.
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