KUNG FU PANDA Director To Helm MASTERS OF THE UNIVERSE
Action producer Joel Silver will shepherd He-Man & Co to the big screen.
John Stevenson, the co-director of Kung Fu Panda, has signed on to direct Masters of the Universe, Warner Bros. and Silver Pictures' live-action version of the popular 1980s cartoon and toy line.
The show, made in partnership with toy company Mattel, was known for the image of blond-haired Prince Adam on top of a mountain uttering the magic words, "By the power of Grayskull, I have the power," and turning into the heroic He-Man. He-Man and his allies -- Battle Cat, Man-at-Arms and Orko -- defended their planet Eternia from the evil forces of Skeletor, who tried week after week to conquer a fortress known as Castle Grayskull, which imbued He-Man with his powers.
Justin Marks penned the script, which skews more toward gritty fantasy and reimagines Adam as a soldier who sets off to find his destiny, happening upon magical world called Eternia. There, a being called Skeletor has raised a technological army and is bent on eradicating all traces of magic.
Mattel was already aware of Stevenson's creativity, having worked with him in the making of toys for Kung Fu Panda.
For Warners, Masters is the second recent project that sees the studio look to the animation world for live-action talent. Warners recently hired Horton Hears a Who! director Jimmy Hayward to helm Jonah Hex.
Stevenson is coming off an Oscar nomination for Kung Fu Panda, which he directed with Mark Osborne. Masters would be the live action debut for the man, who worked as a storyboard artist and character designer before directing episodes of DreamWorks Television's Father of the Pride.