{"id":1020946,"date":"2026-06-12T01:48:22","date_gmt":"2026-06-12T01:48:22","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/www.europesays.com\/uk\/1020946\/"},"modified":"2026-06-12T01:48:22","modified_gmt":"2026-06-12T01:48:22","slug":"in-the-protein-era-even-he-man-is-hawking-supplements","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/www.europesays.com\/uk\/1020946\/","title":{"rendered":"In the Protein Era, Even He-Man Is Hawking Supplements"},"content":{"rendered":"

In the movie \u201cMasters of the Universe<\/a>,\u201d He-Man<\/a> is a warrior with bulging muscles. But it turns out that the source of his strength, the power of Grayskull, isn\u2019t available to the middle-age audience watching the film in a fit of nostalgia.<\/p>\n

Cue the protein!<\/p>\n

Mattel, the toy company that created He-Man more than 40 years ago, has made no secret of its desire to turn the film into a merchandising juggernaut<\/a>. That even extends to tapping into Americans\u2019 seemingly insatiable appetite for muscle-building protein.<\/p>\n

The company has teamed up with Perfect Sports, a Canadian maker of nutritional supplements, to make a limited-edition line of He-Man-branded whey protein products and other supplements for athletes and weekend warriors looking to bulk up.<\/p>\n

The goal is to reach the audience that watched He-Man as a cartoon in the 1980s. The largest segment of the movie\u2019s audience has been men ages 45 to 54, according to the Hollywood research firm PostTrak.<\/p>\n

\u201cIt\u2019s very good marketing,\u201d said Silvia Bellezza, an associate professor of business in marketing at Columbia Business School.<\/p>\n

The tie-in piggybacks on Americans\u2019 desire to consume more protein. Whey protein is a multibillion-dollar industry<\/a>, driven by weight lifters looking to build muscle and users of GLP-1 weight-loss drugs hoping to avoid muscle loss. PepsiCo<\/a> said last year that it would make snacks with added protein, nutrition bar makers<\/a> are doing the same<\/a>, and dairy farmers<\/a> are profiting from the protein boom.<\/p>\n

Mattel, which has filled shelves with a trove of action figures tied to the movie, has also teamed up with an array of other companies to create products befitting a sword-and-sorcery franchise.<\/p>\n

Mars Petcare is introducing Temptations kitty treats for felines dreaming of becoming He-Man\u2019s Battle Cat, with flavors like Battle Bacon Crunch. Denny\u2019s is telling customers to defeat their hunger with its He-Man Battle Burger.<\/p>\n

Marketing was simpler four decades ago when Masters of the Universe was introduced as a toy line, said Nick Karamanos, a senior vice president at Mattel who oversees licensing. \u201cI grew up on it as a child,\u201d he said. \u201cI remember the thermos bottles in the lunch boxes.\u201d<\/p>\n

Mattel took a broader approach to market the movie, he added, which includes finding not only the right categories but the right partners.<\/p>\n

Perfect Sports already had experience doing collaborations for movies like \u201cThunderbolts\u201d and \u201cCaptain America: Brave New World,\u201d said Steve Gibb, the company\u2019s senior vice president of global sales and business development. He added that many of the company\u2019s executives, including the owner, Bruce Colero, had grown up on He-Man.<\/p>\n

\u201cEverything connected for us with this collaboration, from the personal to the business side,\u201d he said.<\/p>\n

The hero\u2019s revival comes at a time of growing concern about the so-called manosphere<\/a>, which has been criticized for its toxic and misogynistic views. But some marketing experts say \u201cMasters of the Universe\u201d provides a good counterexample.<\/p>\n

\u201cHe-Man is more about physical fitness,\u201d said Chris Colombo, the founder of Brighter Path, a consulting firm focused on media and entertainment.<\/p>\n

    \n
  1. \"\"\/\n

    Gregory Schmidt<\/p>\n

    European Business Editor<\/p>\n

    Mattel’s Masters of the Universe toy line may be aimed at children, but the movie is drawing primarily adult fans of the franchise. Beyond the usual movie tie-ins, like apparel and glassware, Mattel’s partnership with Perfect Sports a good fit, Chris Colombo, a marketing expert, told me. “The brand ties itself to physical transformation,” he said.<\/p>\n

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