Dolph Lundgren Was 'Very Cold' in Masters of the Universe : 'My Costume Was the Size of a Stamp'
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Dolph Lundgren embodied the all-powerful He-Man in the Masters of the Universe, but on the set of the 1987 cult classic, the Swedish martial artist and actor was just as mortal as any human.
Based on the Mattel toy line of the same name, the Gary Goddard-directed superhero action epic saw Lundgren, now 64, follow up his breakout role of boxing champion Ivan Drago in Rocky IV (1985), by donning even less clothing to play He-Man.
"What I do remember is we shot 54 nights in a row, I think it was," Lundgren, who's now starring in a hilarious Old Spice Sweat Defense Dry Spray commercial, tells PEOPLE. "We shot everything at night and my costume was the size of a stamp. Basically there was a cover in the front and a couple of straps. It was very, very cold."
Looking back, Lundgren admits the "big switch" from playing "a Soviet bad guy" in the Rocky sequel to playing "this American hero" in Masters of the Universe was "hard."
"I felt lot pressure," he says, "but I do have fond memories of that picture, because it is that sort of fantasy — a real fantasy, like the stuff you watch when you were a kid. It was a good time for me."
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Lundgren is in a generally reflective mood thanks to his new partnership with Old Spice, which — with the help of deepfake technology — resurrects his '80s action persona. His muscles might appear less large, but there's no mistaking his chiseled jawline and piercing blue eyes.
"It's eerie watching yourself, but not really yourself," he says of the ad. "It's like my younger brother or something."
Deciding to work with Old Spice was easy, Lundgren says, as he has been using the brand before he even got his big break in Hollywood.
"My dad used to have it when I was a kid in Sweden," he shares. "And then I got into it a couple years ago because my fiancée [Emma Krokdal] likes the scent. There's something classic about it. The scent is subdued but still good and still fresh. It feels sporty and I feel it suits me."
Moviestore/Shutterstock Dolph Lundgren in Masters of the Universe (1987)
As for Masters of the Universe, the film is getting a long-in-the-works remake that Mattel and Netflix announced in January. Kyle Allen — who recently appeared as Balkan in West Side Story — will be portraying the beloved character in the upcoming live-action film.
Allen's casting comes almost three years after Netflix heartthrob Noah Centineo said he would play He-Man in the remake, when it was a Mattel/Sony project.
Lundgren, who says he hadn't heard of the Netflix remake until speaking with PEOPLE, is game to take part in the latest iteration.
"There's a charm to that story," he says. "That's one film of mine that kids can watch."
