Interview: Author Mackenzi Lee Tells The Story Of Teela: Daughter Of Eternos

By Chad Burdette

on June 2, 2026

Ahead of the new live-action Masters of the Universe film, releasing this week (June 5, 2026) from Amazon MGM Studios and Mattel Studios, starring Nicholas Galitzine as He-Man, Camila Mendes as Teela, Alison Brie as Evil-Lyn, and Idris Elba as Man-At-Arms, ]comes Teela: Daughter of Eternos from Mattel Press and written by New York Times bestselling author Mackenzi Lee

This thrilling original YA novel is set in the world of the Masters of the Universe live-action film, taking place before the events of the movei where Eternian warrior Teela must decide how much she’s willing to sacrifice to save the people—and home she loves.

Mackenzi Lee is the New York Times best-selling author of the historical fantasy novels Loki: Where Mischief Lies; The Gentleman’s Guide to Vice and Virtue (winner of a 2018 Stonewall Honor Award and the New England Book Award); and its sequel, The Lady’s Guide to Petticoats and Piracy.

She is also the author of the nonfiction book Bygone Badass Broads, a collection of short biographies of forgotten women from history.

Mackenzi sat down to chat about her experience getting in to the Masters Of The Universe world and more

–

Interview Shorts

The Wild Origin of Masters of the Universe

‘

Teela’s arc: loss, survival and finding identity

–

Teela: Daughter of Eternos — Book Pitch

–

How writing Marvel books led to Masters of the Universe

–

Balancing Creativity and Mattel’s Guardrails

–

Teela’s Moral Awakening

TEELA: DAUGHTER OF ETERNOS

A FALLEN KINGDOM
Four years after Skeletor decimated the kingdom of Eternos, Teela and the scattered refugees of Eternia survive by never staying in one place for long. When a brutal storm of acidic rain deep within the Evergreen Forest leaves their camp ravaged and hope at its thinnest, some, like Teela’s friend Locke, begin to plan for a future beyond Eternia. But Teela knows her father Duncan, the once-mighty Man-At-Arms, won’t survive leaving the land he swore to protect.

A FORBIDDEN ALLIANCE
Desperate to save her people, Teela ventures to Darksmoke to bargain with the ancient dragon Granamyr. He bestows upon her a vial filled with a mysterious, powerful elixir—and no instructions on its use.

Enter Evil-Lyn, Skeletor’s ruthless second-in-command, who intercepts Teela with a dangerous proposal: an alliance. In exchange for the vial’s secrets, Teela and the Heroic Warriors must someday help the sorceress overthrow Skeletor himself.

A MAGIC THAT COULD SAVE—OR DESTROY—THEM ALL
The vial heals the sick and brings food back to empty tables—until the forest around the camp begins to change. Rivers vanish. Trees peel to bone. Creatures flee. As the land around them withers at an ever-increasing pace, Teela must confront an impossible question: Has the very magic she used to save her people doomed Eternia instead?