{ "id": "epgt8q6qhb", "slug": "he-man-and-she-ra-the-secret-of-the-sword", "title": "He-Man and She-Ra: The Secret of the Sword", "updated": "2026-11-01", "topic_path": [ { "id": "culture", "label": "Arts and culture", "api_url": "https://www.edgepedia.org/api/v1/topics/culture" }, { "id": "culture.performance", "label": "Screen and stage", "api_url": "https://www.edgepedia.org/api/v1/topics/culture.performance" }, { "id": "culture.performance.screen", "label": "Film and television", "api_url": "https://www.edgepedia.org/api/v1/topics/culture.performance.screen" }, { "id": "culture.performance.screen.films", "label": "Films and standalone screen works", "api_url": "https://www.edgepedia.org/api/v1/topics/culture.performance.screen.films" }, { "id": "culture.performance.screen.films.films.genre-form", "label": "Films by genre, form, and subject", "api_url": "https://www.edgepedia.org/api/v1/topics/culture.performance.screen.films.films.genre-form" }, { "id": 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"https://www.edgepedia.org/api/v1/geo/geo.us.t1946.culture.performance.screen" }, { "id": "geo.us.t1946.culture.performance.screen.films", "label": "Films and standalone screen works", "api_url": "https://www.edgepedia.org/api/v1/geo/geo.us.t1946.culture.performance.screen.films" }, { "id": "geo.us.t1946.culture.performance.screen.films.films.genre-form", "label": "Films by genre, form, and subject", "api_url": "https://www.edgepedia.org/api/v1/geo/geo.us.t1946.culture.performance.screen.films.films.genre-form" }, { "id": "geo.us.t1946.culture.performance.screen.films.films.genre-form.animated-shorts", "label": "Animated and short films", "api_url": "https://www.edgepedia.org/api/v1/geo/geo.us.t1946.culture.performance.screen.films.films.genre-form.animated-shorts" }, { "id": "geo.us.t1946.culture.performance.screen.films.films.genre-form.animated-shorts.animated-films-by-source-subject", "label": "Animated films by source material and subject", "api_url": "https://www.edgepedia.org/api/v1/geo/geo.us.t1946.culture.performance.screen.films.films.genre-form.animated-shorts.animated-films-by-source-subject" } ] } ], "excerpt": "He-Man and She-Ra: The Secret of the Sword is a 1985 Filmation animated feature, also called The Secret of the Sword, compiled from the first five She-Ra episodes and released theatrically by Atlantic Releasing on March 22, 1985 to introduce She-Ra, He-Man's twin sister, before her TV series.", "snippet": "He-Man and She-Ra: The Secret of the Sword is a 1985 Filmation animated feature, also called The Secret of the Sword, compiled from the first five She-Ra episodes and released theatrically by Atlantic Releasing on March 22, 1985 to introduce She-Ra, He-Man's twin sister, before her TV series.", "node": "culture.performance.screen.films.films.genre-form.animated-shorts.animated-films-by-source-subject.films-based-on-comics-and-games", "markdown": "# He-Man and She-Ra: The Secret of the Sword\n\n**He-Man and She-Ra: The Secret of the Sword** is a 1985 American animated feature film produced by Filmation Associates that introduced the character She-Ra, Princess of Power, as the twin sister of He-Man. Compiled from the first five episodes of the television series *She-Ra: Princess of Power*, it was released to theaters before the series had aired, serving as a theatrical launch for the spin-off property.[1](https://catalog.afi.com/Film/58362-THE-SECRET-OF-THE-SWORD?cxt=filmography) • [2](https://www.movie-censorship.com/report.php?ID=215515)\n\n| Key fact | Detail |\n|---|---|\n| Release | Premiered in Los Angeles on March 22, 1985, a week ahead of the planned March 29 date; New York opening May 17, 1985; distributed by Atlantic Releasing[1](https://catalog.afi.com/Film/58362-THE-SECRET-OF-THE-SWORD?cxt=filmography) |\n| Production | Filmation Associates; producer Arthur H. Nadel, executive producer Lou Scheimer; writers Larry DiTillio and Bob Forward; five credited directors[1](https://catalog.afi.com/Film/58362-THE-SECRET-OF-THE-SWORD?cxt=filmography) |\n| Purpose | Introduced the new Mattel character She-Ra as He-Man's sister, five months before *She-Ra: Princess of Power* debuted in first-run syndication on September 9, 1985[1](https://catalog.afi.com/Film/58362-THE-SECRET-OF-THE-SWORD?cxt=filmography) • [3](https://heman.org/cartoons/secret-of-the-sword/) |\n| Source material | The first five *She-Ra* episodes, edited together as a feature; the film's opening chapters were later recut into the series premiere[2](https://www.movie-censorship.com/report.php?ID=215515) • [3](https://heman.org/cartoons/secret-of-the-sword/) |\n| Runtime | Reported variously as 87 minutes (Rotten Tomatoes), 91 minutes (heman.org), 93 minutes (AFI Catalog), and 100 minutes (JustWatch, Metacritic)[4](https://www.rottentomatoes.com/m/the_secret_of_the_sword) • [3](https://heman.org/cartoons/secret-of-the-sword/) • [1](https://catalog.afi.com/Film/58362-THE-SECRET-OF-THE-SWORD?cxt=filmography) • [5](https://www.justwatch.com/us/movie/the-secret-of-the-sword) |\n| Reception | 60% Tomatometer from 5 critics and 79% Popcornmeter from over 2,500 audience ratings on Rotten Tomatoes; Metascore 31 on Metacritic; 7.2 on IMDb[4](https://www.rottentomatoes.com/m/the_secret_of_the_sword) • [6](https://www.metacritic.com/movie/he-man-and-she-ra-the-secret-of-the-sword/?ftag=MCD-06-10aaa1c) |\n| Box office | Reported $6.5 to $7.5 million against a reported $2.0 million production budget[3](https://heman.org/cartoons/secret-of-the-sword/) |\n\n## Spoilers\n\n### Story\n\nThe film opens at Castle Grayskull, where the Sorceress has a nightmare of a skeleton-faced villain kidnapping a baby girl, then sees a glowing sword open a portal to another world. She summons Prince Adam and Cringer to Grayskull, gives Adam a jeweled sword, and sends them to the planet Etheria to investigate.[1](https://catalog.afi.com/Film/58362-THE-SECRET-OF-THE-SWORD?cxt=filmography) • [5](https://www.justwatch.com/us/movie/the-secret-of-the-sword)\n\nEtheria is ruled by the Evil Horde under the warlord Hordak from his fortress, the Fright Zone. Adam and Cringer befriend the Great Rebellion, a small group fighting the Horde, and Adam transforms into He-Man to help them before being captured by the Horde's Force Captain, Adora. The Sorceress then reveals to Adora, speaking through the jewel in a mysterious sword, that she is a princess and He-Man's twin sister, kidnapped by the Horde as an infant. Adora raises the sword, transforms into She-Ra, Princess of Power, and frees her brother. Reunited, the twins fight to free Etheria, and Adora chooses to stay and lead the Great Rebellion rather than return home to Eternia.[7](https://www.imdb.com/title/tt0089984/plotsummary/) • [3](https://heman.org/cartoons/secret-of-the-sword/)\n\n## Production and release\n\nMattel created the [He-Man and the Masters of the Universe](https://www.edgepedia.org/he-man-and-the-masters-of-the-universe) toy line, which inspired the [Filmation](https://www.edgepedia.org/filmation) animated television series in 1983; at the time the series reportedly aired in thirty-two countries. In 1984 Mattel and Filmation developed the companion Princess of Power line and series built around He-Man's previously unmentioned twin sister, and writers Larry DiTillio and Bob Forward wrote a feature-length origin story intended to launch the character in theaters before her series aired.[1](https://catalog.afi.com/Film/58362-THE-SECRET-OF-THE-SWORD?cxt=filmography) • [3](https://heman.org/cartoons/secret-of-the-sword/)\n\nFive directors from Filmation's television bullpen shared the workload: Ed Friedman, Lou Kachivas, Marsh Lamore, Bill Reed, and Gwen Wetzler. Atlantic Releasing Corp. acquired U.S. and Canadian distribution rights, and the picture premiered in Los Angeles on March 22, 1985, a week earlier than the planned March 29 date.[1](https://catalog.afi.com/Film/58362-THE-SECRET-OF-THE-SWORD?cxt=filmography) • [3](https://heman.org/cartoons/secret-of-the-sword/) The film carries an MPAA rating of G.[1](https://catalog.afi.com/Film/58362-THE-SECRET-OF-THE-SWORD?cxt=filmography)\n\nFor its music, the film uses Filmation's own He-Man and She-Ra scoring library, whose pieces were written by [Shuki Levy](https://www.edgepedia.org/shuki-levy) and [Haim Saban](https://www.edgepedia.org/haim-saban) together with Erika Lane and center on the theme song \"I Have the Power,\" performed by Erika Scheimer and Noam Kaniel.[3](https://heman.org/cartoons/secret-of-the-sword/) • [1](https://catalog.afi.com/Film/58362-THE-SECRET-OF-THE-SWORD?cxt=filmography) The voice cast is small and heavily doubled: John Erwin voices Prince Adam and He-Man, Melendy Britt voices Adora and She-Ra, Alan Oppenheimer voices Skeletor among other roles, Linda Gary voices the Sorceress, Shadow Weaver, and several others, George DiCenzo voices both Bow and Hordak, and Lou Scheimer voices King Randor, Swift Wind, Kowl, and more.[5](https://www.justwatch.com/us/movie/the-secret-of-the-sword)\n\n## Versions\n\nThree theatrical versions of the film exist: a German theatrical version of approximately 76 minutes, the shortest; a UK theatrical version of approximately 88 minutes with its own opening and a theme composed for the movie; and a US theatrical version with only a few alterations from the source episodes. A comparison of the UK version against the uncut She-Ra episode version found 47 differences, including 40 removed scenes and two scenes with altered audio, for a total length difference of about 15 minutes.[2](https://www.movie-censorship.com/report.php?ID=215515)\n\n## Reception and legacy\n\nCritical response was mixed to negative. The film holds a 60% Tomatometer on Rotten Tomatoes from five reviews, against a 79% Popcornmeter audience score from more than 2,500 ratings.[4](https://www.rottentomatoes.com/m/the_secret_of_the_sword) On Metacritic it scores 31 based on four critic reviews; Time Out's Mark Salisbury praised the \"amalgam of fairytale, sci-fi and Greek mythology\" as exciting, while Janet Maslin of The New York Times called it \"a Saturday morning kiddie cartoon stretched out to feature length.\"[6](https://www.metacritic.com/movie/he-man-and-she-ra-the-secret-of-the-sword/?ftag=MCD-06-10aaa1c) Audience scores have remained warm, with a 7.2 rating on IMDb.[3](https://heman.org/cartoons/secret-of-the-sword/)\n\nCommercially, reported figures put the film at $6.5 to $7.5 million at the box office against a $2.0 million production budget.[3](https://heman.org/cartoons/secret-of-the-sword/) Its release strategy was unusual for a cartoon spin-off: it opened in theaters five months before *She-Ra: Princess of Power* had aired a single episode, and the film's opening chapters were re-edited into the series premiere when the show debuted in first-run syndication on September 9, 1985.[3](https://heman.org/cartoons/secret-of-the-sword/)\n\nThe film has stayed in circulation through repeated home-video releases, from VHS reissues in the late 1980s to DVD editions from BCI Eclipse and Mill Creek Entertainment in the 2000s and 2010s. Netflix's 2018 reboot *She-Ra and the Princesses of Power* renewed mainstream interest in the character it introduced. As of September 2026, [JustWatch](https://www.edgepedia.org/justwatch) lists the film as unavailable on any streaming service, with disc releases as the only way to watch it.[3](https://heman.org/cartoons/secret-of-the-sword/) • [5](https://www.justwatch.com/us/movie/the-secret-of-the-sword)\n\n## References\n\n1. [The Secret of the Sword (1985), AFI Catalog of Feature Films](https://catalog.afi.com/Film/58362-THE-SECRET-OF-THE-SWORD?cxt=filmography)\n2. [Secret of the Sword, The (Comparison: UK Theatrical Version – She-Ra Version), Movie-Censorship.com](https://www.movie-censorship.com/report.php?ID=215515)\n3. [He-Man and She-Ra: The Secret of the Sword (1985), The Definitive Movie Hub (heman.org)](https://heman.org/cartoons/secret-of-the-sword/)\n4. [The Secret of the Sword, Rotten Tomatoes](https://www.rottentomatoes.com/m/the_secret_of_the_sword)\n5. [He-Man and She-Ra: The Secret of the Sword streaming, JustWatch](https://www.justwatch.com/us/movie/the-secret-of-the-sword)\n6. [He-Man and She-Ra: The Secret of the Sword Reviews, Metacritic](https://www.metacritic.com/movie/he-man-and-she-ra-the-secret-of-the-sword/?ftag=MCD-06-10aaa1c)\n7. [He-Man and She-Ra: The Secret of the Sword (1985) – Plot, IMDb](https://www.imdb.com/title/tt0089984/plotsummary/)\n\n---\n*Topic: Encyclopedia › Arts and culture › Screen and stage › Film and television › Films and standalone screen works › Films by genre, form, and subject › Animated and short films › Animated films by source material and subject › Films based on comics and games*\n\n*Initially written Oct 3, 2026 · Reviewed: Oct 3, 2026; Oct 25, 2026 · Edited: Oct 3, 2026; Oct 15, 2026; Oct 25, 2026; Nov 1, 2026 · Last review: Oct 25, 2026*\n\n*Copyright 2026 EdgeChat AI, a subsidiary of Biostate AI.*\n\nLicense: Edgepedia Community License 1.0, https://www.edgepedia.org/edgepedia/license\n", "same_as": [], "url": "https://www.edgepedia.org/he-man-and-she-ra-the-secret-of-the-sword", "markdown_url": "https://www.edgepedia.org/he-man-and-she-ra-the-secret-of-the-sword.md", "license": { "name": "Edgepedia Community License 1.0", "url": "https://www.edgepedia.org/edgepedia/license", "summary": "Free with credit, commercial use included. AI training is open to everyone. For other uses, organizations over USD 100M in revenue or 100M monthly users license separately.", "spdx": "LicenseRef-Edgepedia-Community-1.0" }, "credit": "\"He-Man and She-Ra: The Secret of the Sword\", Edgepedia (EdgeChat), https://www.edgepedia.org/he-man-and-she-ra-the-secret-of-the-sword. Edgepedia Community License 1.0.", "credit_md": "\"[He-Man and She-Ra: The Secret of the Sword](https://www.edgepedia.org/he-man-and-she-ra-the-secret-of-the-sword)\", Edgepedia (EdgeChat), [https://www.edgepedia.org/he-man-and-she-ra-the-secret-of-the-sword](https://www.edgepedia.org/he-man-and-she-ra-the-secret-of-the-sword). [Edgepedia Community License 1.0](https://www.edgepedia.org/edgepedia/license).", "credit_html": "\"He-Man and She-Ra: The Secret of the Sword\", Edgepedia (EdgeChat), https://www.edgepedia.org/he-man-and-she-ra-the-secret-of-the-sword. Edgepedia Community License 1.0.", "speakable": "He-Man and She-Ra: The Secret of the Sword is a 1985 Filmation animated feature, also called The Secret of the Sword, compiled from the first five She-Ra episodes and released theatrically by Atlantic Releasing on March 22, 1985 to introduce She-Ra, He-Man's twin sister, before her TV series." }