A blink-and-you-miss-it joke in the new Masters of the Universe trailer has sparked an outsized conservative backlash online.
Featured VideoAfter Amazon MGM Studios dropped the first look at the upcoming He-Man reboot, some right-wing viewers fixated on a brief office gag involving the hero's name, interpreting it as a "woke" political statement rather than the obvious pun it was meant to be.
In Masters of the Universe, Nicholas Galitzine stars as Adam Glenn, a regular guy on Earth who later reclaims the Sword of Power and becomes the superhero He-Man.
AdvertisementJared Leto appears as Skeletor, the classic villain waiting on the other end, whom He-Man and other Eternian warriors must battle.
The pronoun gag conservatives took literally
About 37 seconds into the trailer, Adam can be seen sitting at a desk job on Earth. The camera panned to reveal a nameplate reading, "Adam Glenn, he/him."
The joke landed plainly for most viewers as a tongue-in-cheek reference to He-Man's hilariously awful name.
AdvertisementHowever, conservative commenters on X treated the nameplate's inclusion as ideological sabotage. Some critics declared the movie "woke garbage" and complained about "forced diversity."
One self-described Christian author, @jondelarroz, wrote, "Now they’re making a Masters of the Universe and giving He-man pronouns. These people won’t stop until they ruin everything."
The transphobic account @GenderReceipts accused the film of "promoting gender/trans ideology."
AdvertisementOthers escalated the tone. @BennettProduct tweeted, "God dam [sic] woke mind virus is ruining everything....You just f*cked up my childhood memory.... @He_Man_movie what the f*ck? He-Man is not a he/him.....you dumb f*ckers. He is a bad a** skeleton fighting son of a b*tch that knows he is a man. F*ck..... Now I have to make a better one...."
The internet explains the joke, slowly and loudly
Thankfully, many users pointed out the joke with more than a bit of patience and sarcasm. "They’re giving He-Man pronouns," @wyattyhalpert replied dryly.
@FreddyInSpace wrote, "He-Man. His name is He-Man. They’re not giving him pronouns in 2026. He literally is a sword-wielding pronoun."
AdvertisementThen @danielwinvw asked, "What’s next?! She/Ra?"
Others pointed out that He-Man and She-Ra have always been, as the conservatives said, "woke," like with a 1983 PSA about inappropriate touching.
Meanwhile, jokes piled on. @nxd1979 tweeted, "i can’t stop thinking about 'they’re giving he-man pronouns.'"
Advertisement@WickedReina617 said, "Aside from it being an obvious joke, the fact that they're sooooo upset by it is so embarrassing." @Questergirl replied, saying, "Right? They're essentially objecting to Pronoun-Man having pronouns under his name. LOL."
Masters of the Universe is scheduled for release on June 5, 2026.
Advertisement
Russia tightens passport rules for children in occupied Ukraine, complicating escape, activists say