A bit of background might be in order. Masters of the Universe: Revelation is not a reboot of the beloved Mattel IP but rather a continuation of it. In the interest of making the franchise feel more consequential the show features some bold storytelling swings. In the series’ first episode, both He-Man (Chris Wood) and his archenemy Skeletor (Mark Hamill) are killed, leaving Eternia void of magic. With He-Man absent (save for some flashbacks), the character of Teela (Sarah Michelle Gellar) steps into the protagonist void.
Though Masters of the Universe: Revelation was designed to please fans of the franchise, some of those fans took to social media to voice their displeasure with the sidelining of He-Man in favor of Teela. If this all sounds to you like a fairly predictable cycle of internet outrage, then you’d be right. It’s so predictable, in fact, that while Smith’s interview with Variety came before the series even premiered, he was able to respond ahead of time to the likely fan complaints.
In addition to preemptively swatting off complaints of excessive wokeness, Smith also addressed the concerns over MOTU: Revelation’s big storytelling gambit.
“I see people online go, ‘Hey man, they’re getting rid of He-Man!’” he said. “Like, you really fucking think Mattel Television, who hired me and paid me money, wants to do a fucking Masters of the Universe show without He-Man? Grow the fuck up, man. Like, that blew my mind, a bunch of people being like, ‘Oh, I smell it. This is a bait and switch.’”
Not one to mince words, Smith added that those complaining about the He-Man/Teela twist don’t understand the point of Masters of the Universe.
“It’s been interesting, seeing who truly is a hardcore fan. Because anybody that’s like, ‘Oh, man, there’s not enough He-Man’ or something like that, doesn’t understand the show that we based it on. There were episodes where he lost the sword and he never became He-Man. It wasn’t like He-Man always saved the day. His friends helped him. That was the fucking point of the show.”
