Dolph Lundgren knows a thing or two about swords. In fact, in 1987, he wielded one of the most famous in Hollywood history when he played He-Man, and took on the legendary Sword of Power for Masters of the Universe. The image of the giant swede holding the iconic fantasy weaspon remains one of the more enduring visions of 1980s fantasy lore, even if the cult classic movie didn’t fare nearly as well as it should have. Now, to celebrate his role as an ambassador for the USA Fencing team ahead of their journey to Los Angeles 2028, we spoke to the action icon about his cameo in Masters of the Universe, and the film’s disappointing box office performance.
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Lundgren revealed that initially, he wasn’t impressed with the cameo as it was written in the original script, and insisted that he wanted something more substantial to do, despite his enthusiasm to sign up: “When they first asked me, it was just a cameo – didn’t really have any meaning. And I was the one who said, “Yeah, I would love to be in the movie, but I’d like to contribute something. Like, I want to be a bit He-Man-esque, you know. I want to say something that helps this young kid to excel.” So, then they came up with the gym scene, you know, “You’re on my spot,” you know, that line – “You got to get behind yourself, not in front.” I like that dialogue, and then I was happy to do it.”
We also asked whether there was ever any discussion of you playing King Randor or another character at any point, and he revealed some information about plans for his 1987 MoTU movie that were scrapped because of budgetary concerns: “As far as I know, it was always the cameo… I’m not a big, you know, expert on He-Man lore and the whole back story. But I know King Randor was a character in the original script back in the ’80s; I think there was a version where he was in it, but Canon cut the budget, and they eliminated a lot of stuff that was supposed to take place on Eternia. Because, in the final script, we end up going to Earth very quickly, like within 5 minutes or whatever, maybe 10 minutes we’re on Earth. But, no, they never approached me about King Randor.”
Dolph Lundgren is Returning to The Olympics in 2028
We spoke to Lundgren as he takes on an ambassadorial role for USA Fencing for the 2028 Olympics in Los Angeles. The partnership started from Dolph’s interest in the sport, and his history with swords on screen. He first picked up the sport as part of his preparation for 1994 action movie Pentathlon, and will now be getting in the gym with USA Fencing’s Olympians, training with them, providing mentorship and advice as they prepare to compete and represent the United States at the highest level of competition in LA 2028. It’s a full circle moment for Lundgren, who trained with the US Pentathlon team ahead of the 1996 Olympics in Atlanta, and was then selected to serve as the symbolic Team Leader to help build the image of the sport.
ComicBook spoke to Lundgren about what he found difficult back in the 1990s about his Pentathlon preparation: “When I had to practice because I played an athlete in the movie, I thought the toughest one for me was the riding. Because, you know, I weigh about 220, 230, and horses don’t like heavy guys, they… It’s uncomfortable, you get it, right? So, they want to throw you off, of course. So, that was tough.” But he found the passion for fencing that will now carry through to his new role: “The fencing was one of my better disciplines because of martial arts, you know. Running is tough when you’re a big guy as well. Swimming, I was pretty good at. Shooting, pretty good. In the movies, obviously, it’s not real bullets, but I was in the military, so I knew how to do that.” Chris Killian asked whether this new ambassador role felt like a homecoming:
“Yeah, it does, for sure. I’ve stayed in touch with Rob Stull, who’s the president of the UIPM, the International Federation. So, we’ve been in touch throughout the years, and, you know, I was part of the US team, so I was part of the Olympics. I’ve been to the Olympics since, but I haven’t been part of it, but now I’m hoping in ’28 to be part of it again in some other capacity.”
He may not be called up to represent his home nation of Sweden in the fencing, but he says his martial arts background helped with the sport: “It’s a combat sport, right? So, martial arts is about unarmed combat, meaning you’re facing an opponent, you have to judge your distance, there’s about timing, discipline, some strength and speed, you know, same as fencing. Fencing, obviously, back in the day, was obviously used in wartime, you know, to stay alive, to kill your opponent, or in duels… I think fencing just suited me because I was used to facing an opponent… and you fake them out, then you try to make them commit, and then you can either parry and take them out, or as they commit, you can maybe go over their épée with your own, or you step to the side, or so it’s kind of like a punch, but you actually have a weapon in your hand.”
But could fencing have helped his previous role in the 1987 Masters of the Universe? Would he have changed He-Man’s fighting style? “That’s possible. I could have learned more about the positions and so forth. Possibly. You know, actually, the thing is, in Masters, it’s a two-handed sword, right? So, it’s a slightly different fighting position. In fencing, you’re trying to make your body a small target. That’s why they keep the hand back here. In foil, they keep it back here so the guy will miss you. So, it’s a more delicate type of weapon… So, I think that some of that knowledge would have probably helped me a little bit, except I sort of took my martial arts background and I adapted it to the two-handed way of fighting with the sword.”
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