Masters of the Universe (2026)

He-Man spends fifteen years working in human resources in Oklahoma City, and that’s the funniest idea in Masters of the Universe by a mile. The movie winks at itself so often that it takes 140 minutes to get where it’s going, and the effects go for quantity over quality, an all-you-can-eat buffet of glowing swords, flying ships and henchmen with silly names. Still, it’s more fun than it has any right to be. Nicholas Galitzine plays Adam as a sweet, slightly lost guy who gave the heroes of Eternia goofy nicknames as a kid, and they have not forgiven him. Jared Leto’s Skeletor is gleefully weird. Kristen Wiig voices Roboto, a combat robot turned servant, and Camila Mendes gives Teela some bite. It made $113.8 million worldwide on a reported $170 to $200 million, which is a rough day at Castle Grayskull. A 5.4 because it’s silly in the right way for way too long. $943 says you hold a hairbrush over your head tonight and yell the famous line, and somebody in the house hears you.

What works: The cast is game, Jared Leto’s Skeletor is delightfully strange, and the script is smart enough to laugh at its own toy-box roots.

What doesn’t: At 140 minutes it runs far too long, and the flood of digital effects feels busy rather than awe-inspiring.

Who it’s for: Grown-ups who had the action figures and kids who are about to ask for them.