10 Things You Didn't Know About Masters Of The Universe
8. Dolph Lundgrens Voice Was Almost Dubbed
When the film was in pre-production, producer Menahem Golan had packaged the adaptation with Dolph Lundgren as He-Man before director Gary Goddard started work. His rise to prominence after Rocky IV had convinced Golan that despite his inexperience, Lundgren would be a perfect He-Man. After a few weeks of shooting, Mattel Marketing Executive Paul Cleveland had said that he just about had a heart-attack after seeing some of the early rough cuts of the film, and hearing Lundgrens voice. Cleveland, and many others, wanted the studio to re-dub Lundgren with another actor, but in his contract, the Swede had the right to try his lines at least three times. Still unconvinced despite Lundgren getting the vocals to an acceptable level of both performance and understanding, Mattel and director Goddard pushed Cannon hard to try the dubbing. They did do a few tests with some other actors, and so good was one of them (flawless said Goddard), that still to this day those involved regret not being able to do so. Golan, on the other hand, gave a firm no to their suggestions, and proceeded with the film as it was. While many have stated that Lundgren certainly looks the part, the most contentious aspect of his He-Man portrayal is the accent. The character was perfectly realised voice-wise in the cartoon by actor John Erwin, but to many, Lundgren's voice still grates to this day. Goud Jaourney! indeed.
Lover of Batman, Steve Martin, Jim Carrey, Arnold Schwarzenegger, Christopher Nolan and Will Ferrell. Sucker for comic-book movies, indies, Jennifer Lawrence, tea and Tottenham.
Favourite films: Terminator 2, The Dark Knight Trilogy, Masters of the Universe, Dumb and Dumber, Planes, Trains and Automobiles, Sideways, American Psycho, Garden State, Eternal Sunshine of the Spotless Mind and Lost In Translation.
