The Masters of the Universe franchise has long been a beloved staple of 80s pop culture, but its theme song has always been a bit of a letdown. Unlike other iconic cartoons of the era, such as The Real Ghostbusters and Teenage Mutant Ninja Turtles, He-Man and the Masters of the Universe lacked a memorable theme song that people could sing along to. However, the 2026 movie adaptation from Travis Knight brings a killer soundtrack courtesy of Daniel Pemberton, and one of the best musical moments comes courtesy of Queen and a theme song from an entirely different fantasy franchise: Highlander. Personally, I think this is one of the most fascinating and underappreciated aspects of the movie. What makes this particularly fascinating is that the song, "Princes of the Universe," was written by Freddie Mercury and performed by Queen for the Highlander soundtrack. It's a banger of a song, and it's no wonder that it was too good for the Highlander franchise. But what many people don't realize is that the song fits seamlessly with Daniel Pemberton's score for Masters of the Universe, enhancing a hilarious moment in the film. One of the movie's best moments comes when Prince Adam gives an inspirational speech to the rebelling warriors of Eternia, convincing them that they still have the strength to take back their home. Following this, the heroes get a traditional slow-motion entrance into battle, and it's set to "Princes of the Universe." However, even though this traditional heroic slow-motion sequence gets some time to look as badass as you'd expect, assisted by the unrivaled vocals of Freddie Mercury and the sizzling riffs of Brian May, it ends with a funny bit. As Adam and his friends land on Eternia, the battle is already raging around them, and the smoke from blasted ships starts to overtake the sequence. Our slow-motion strutting protagonists can't help but immediately stop looking cool because they have to cough. It's a very funny subversion of a familiar blockbuster trope. This is one of many excellent executions of humor in the movie. A big-screen Masters of the Universe adaptation in 2026 shouldn't take itself too seriously, and I think fans of the 1980s cartoon would agree that's for the best. Even Jared Leto manages not to suck in this movie because he makes Skeletor every bit the villainous diva that the animated series did. The result is a slightly less sharp Barbie for boys, but it still delivers some superb entertainment that's far more than lazy nostalgia. Give it a chance, and you won't be disappointed. Masters of the Universe is playing in theaters everywhere now.
