Joel Silver “has the power” and he’s used it to bring animated directing veteran John Stevenson on board to helm Warner’s big screen reboot of He-Man and the Masters of the Universe per a report at Variety.
Stevenson co-directed Kung Fu Panda and has worked on Shrek, Shrek 2, Madagascar and James and the Giant Peach. He got his start in the business working on films of similar ilk to He-Man, The Dark Crystal and Labyrinth.
Justin Marks has already delivered a first draft of the script which rightfully throws away the woefully campy 1996 version starring Dolph Lungdren and returns the franchise to where it belongs: Eternia.
Early reviews of that draft have likened the He-Man reboot to Peter Jackson’s Lord of the Rings with massive battles, creatures, magic and everything fans of He-Man, Skeletor, Man-At-Arms and the rest of Eternia have been wanting to see in a live-action film.
Warner and toymaker Mattel are viewing He-Man the same way Paramount and Hasbro view Transformers and GI Joe: as big tentpole franchises. If it gets that kind of budget and Marks’ screenplay is as hot as believed, Masters of the Universe could become a huge hit for a new generation.
The earliest we’d see He-Man in theaters is 2010 assuming pre-production is moving along smoothly and financing is secured.
