Masters of the Universe Just Teased the Most Powerful He-Man Character Ever - MCE Notices | California State Portal

The following contains spoilers for Masters of the Universe now playing in theaters.

Masters of the Universe brings He-Man and Skeletor back to the big screen after almost 40 years. Yet one of three post-credits scenes marks the (kind of) big screen debut of the most powerful character in a universe where everyone has the power.

The first of the film’s post-credits scenes features Orko in a parody of the PSA endings from the original Masters of the Universe cartoon, in which a character discusses the episode’s moral. The final post-credits scene shows Evil-Lyn picking up Skeletor’s head followed by the villain’s laugh. Yet between these was the most important scene yet, a reference to Force Captain Adora, aka is Adam’s twin sister.

Masters of the Universe Has Its Eyes Set On a ‘Secret of the Sword’-Style Sequel

Image via MGM

The second Masters of the Universe post-credit stinger, not only sets up a potential sequel to the cosmic blockbuster, but also teases the franchise’s strongest character ever. The epic stinger sequence introduces She-Ra to this take on the beloved 1980s cartoon. While the Princess of Power is only seen for a few split seconds, she would seemingly play a significant role in a potential Masters of the Universe sequel.

This actually isn’t the first time a Masters of the Universe mid-credits scene teased She-Ra. The Netflix animated series, which was a quasi-sequel to the 1980s cartoon, hinted at the character. However, rights issues prevented her from actually appearing there. No such problem exists in live action, it seems.

She-Ra’s Masters of the Universe introduction sees Queen Marlena and Man-at-Arms speaking ambiguously about a girl “returning” to them as Adam did. Then the movie cuts to a to show She-Ra, the Sword of Protection, and what appears to be the Filmation-era Fright Zone behind her.

The 2026 movie did not reveal the actor playing She-Ra, who would likely be officially cast if a sequel is greenlit. It also meant her costume design didn’t have to go beyond the iconic bracers and red cape. Still, this sets up a sequel to Masters of the Universe that will evoke the iconic 1980s animated film The Secret of the Sword, which introduced She-Ra, Hordak, and her world of Etheria. Combining the two powerful cousins is something all successive adaptations have failed to do.

Still, there is hope on the horizon. The Rotten Tomatoes score for Masters of the Universe is surprisingly good, with most critics rating it “Fresh” and the film receiving overwhelming audience approval. With a good word-of-mouth campaign from fans and viewers, Masters of the Universe could eventually earn enough at the box office to convince the studios involved to keep the franchise going. And, as is always the case, the real profit comes not from selling tickets but from selling toys. If the new line of He-Man-associated figures from Mattel becomes a hit with kids and adult collectors, the MotU party should keep going.

Who Is She-Ra, the Princess of Power, and Her Relation to He-Man

The 1980s Filmation Masters of the Universe series was a phenomenon, along with its first line of branded toys. Parent company Mattel was surprised to learn that sales of the figures were high with girls as well as boys. So, they went to work on developing a spinoff line of action figures for girls. Hence, She-Ra: Princess of Power was born. The show often ran back-to-back with Masters of the Universe. It also featured crossover episodes with He-Man and a Christmas special. The character also deepened the “lore” of this new storytelling universe.

Adora is Adam’s twin sister, who was kidnapped by the villainous Hordak as an infant. Her existence was kept secret from all but a few key players, such as Man-at-Arms and the Sorceress. On Etheria, Adora was trained as a warrior, becoming a “Force Captain” in the Horde army. This origin, save for the connection to He-Man, was kept mostly intact for the Netflix She-Ra: Princesses of Power series, too. In The Secret of the Sword, Adam/He-Man and his green-furred tiger Cringer travel to Etheria to find Adora. They give her the Sword of Protection, the “twin” of Adam’s Sword of Power. With it, she becomes She-Ra and teams up with her cosmos-powered relative.

Like He-Man, She-Ra possesses the powers of the cosmos, harnessing near limitless strength. While her powered-up sibling is assumed by many to be the most powerful character in the MotU universe, She-Ra gives him a run for his money. In fact, with her warrior training (something she has over Adam in the 2026 Masters of the Universe canon), she can and should be considered the franchise’s most powerful character yet.

She-Ra also comes with a great villain in the form of Hordak. The Secret of the Sword introduced the character as Skeletor’s evil mentor. This created a situation where He-Man and Skeletor were essentially united in opposing him. Later episodes revealed Horde Prime, a powerful entity as well, whom both Hordak and Skeletor seemed servile to. This means that in a potential Masters of the Universe sequel, it could be He-Man and the other heroes who “revive” Skeletor in order to help take down a greater threat.

Why She-Ra Is the Most Important Masters of the Universe Character Ever

Adora as She-Ra in She-Ra and the Princesses of Power at the end of her transformation sequence

In the wake of the initial success of the Masters of the Universe toy line, Mattel’s research discovered something interesting. He-Man’s “I have the power” tagline resonated strongly with kids of all genders. While He-Man was just another in a series of adventuring heroes marketed to little boys, most toys marketed to girls were less action-oriented. Put more bluntly, girls’ toys were about homemaking, beauty, and fashion. This made She-Ra very different, especially since she is more powerful than He-Man. Especially since she appealed to boys as well.

Adored in sparkly pastels and pinks, the She-Ra figurines had hair that girls could brush and all that. Yet she still confused retailers, since boys wanted to include those characters in their play, too. This challenged the rigidly segmented gender ideas of the time. It also gave little girls a classical fantasy hero with whom they could imagine adventures beyond changing outfits, and many of the things the Barbie movie challenged in its story. Also, unlike Princess Leia or Ripley from Alien, She-Ra was a strong female character marketed directly to little girls.

In fact, the Teela character in the original Filmation cartoon was also an ass-kicking female character in a time when that was not common. While things are much better than they were, the antiquated gender norms that She-Ra defied in the 1980s still persist. A Masters of the Universe sequel featuring the Princess of Power could help continue the fight she began almost 40 years ago. Despite essentially being a commercial for action figures, the Masters of the Universe and She-Ra: Princess of Power series was neither empty nor vapid. They told stories about compassion, duty, and heroism that never go out of style. On their own, He-Man and She-Ra are great characters, but together they are unstoppable.

Masters of the Universe is currently in theaters.