Let’s just say Sony hopes this one sticks because we’ve seen so many directors come and go for Masters of the Universe, it almost looked as though the project was never going to see the light of day. Unfortunately, if you are hoping for a big name director to land the part, then you are going to be a bit disappointed. Rest assured, this could work out for the film considering how well indie directors have fared since making the jump from a small budget film to a tentpole blockbuster.

New reports say that brothers Aaron Nee and Adam Nee have been tapped to direct Masters of the Universe, a film which would see He-Man protect Castle Grayskull from the likes of Skeletor. More on the story below.

Variety was the first to break the news. But nothing else was revealed. Escape Artists’ Todd Black, Jason Blumenthal, and Steve Tisch will produce with DeVon Franklin.

The film went through a rotation of directors that consisted of Jon M. Chu (Crazy Rich Asians), Joe Cornish (Attack the Block), Rian Johnson (Star Wars: The Last Jedi), Andrés Muschietti (IT), Kirk DeMicco and Chris Sanders (The Croods), and Phil Lord and Chris Miller (The Lego Movie). After that Chris Yost and McG were among the names who were either hired or attached to direct at some point. Of course, all of that would fall through. Even screenwriter David Goyer was considered to direct the script he wrote for the film, but his obligations to other projects prevented that from happening.

But now it looks like Sony has finally settled on a pair of directors. This wouldn’t be the first time that a couple of untested filmmakers took the helm of a major project. After Slither and Super James Gunn went on to direct Guardians of the Galaxy and its subsequent sequel, and is set to direct the third film. After Safety Not Guaranteed Colin Trevorrow jumped on board for Jurassic World and Jurassic World 3, and was attached to direct Star Wars: Episode IX for a while. Gareth Edwards made his start with Monsters before going on to direct Godzilla (2014) and Rogue One: A Star Wars Story. Likewise for The Kings of Summer director Jordan Vogt-Roberts, who went on to direct Kong: Skull Island. And let’s not forget Patty Jenkins, who directed Monster before making the massively successful Wonder Woman and landing a deal for its sequel.

Although, the practice has produced very mixed results. Marc Webb, who directed (500) Days of Summer, worked on the very mixed Amazing Spider-Man films. Josh Trank went from Chronicle to the Fantastic Four (2015).

As for the Nee brothers they are best known for their work on The Last Romantic and Band of Robbers; the latter helped make a name for themselves.

Masters of the Universe is based on a series of Mattel toys, where a young prince named Adam became He-Man thanks to the power of a mystical sword. With the help of the medieval characters, He-Man and the rest of the Masters of the Universe helped defend the powerful Castle Grayskull from the likes of Skeletor. The success of the show would produce a spinoff called She-Ra, Princess of Power.

Sony has seen some mild success last year. Both Spider-Man: Homecoming and Jumanji: Welcome to the Jungle were huge hits for the studio. So they would like to keep that trend going for as long as possible. Hopefully, that means they will be able to keep the Nee brothers for the entire film process.

Sony currently has Masters of the Universe scheduled for a December 18, 2019 release.

[Source: Variety]