Camila Mendes and Idris Elba are helping bring one of pop culture’s most beloved father-daughter dynamics to life in Masters of the Universe.

In director Travis Knight’s live-action adaptation, Mendes stars as Teela while Elba portrays Duncan, also known as Man-At-Arms. The film picks up after years of separation and devastation on Eternia, with the pair navigating not only war and survival, but also the emotional distance that formed between them over time.

Filling in the years between Teela and Duncan

For Mendes, understanding what happened in the years audiences don’t initially see was key to grounding Teela emotionally.

“I talked to Travis a lot about that to understand,” Mendes said. “A lot of years passed between what we see in the beginning and what we see in the middle of the film.”

“And my understanding was just that after Eternia was destroyed… after Eternia is destroyed, Teela has spent the last however many years fighting with the rebellion, trying to restore Eternia and protect it,” she continued. “And feeling very disconnected from her father who has given up on the fight.”

Elba explained that Duncan’s emotional collapse following Eternia’s destruction shaped much of how he approached the character.

“There was a lot of discussion about what happens to him,” Elba said. “I mean, he fails drastically, turns to the bottle, but he also just wants to be the shining emblem to his daughter that he always was and he couldn’t.”

“He got destroyed in that fight. I think he got hurt badly physically as well. Trap Jaw did some things,” he added. “So I think there was a psychological impact to him and that was what I fed into his drinking, the way he looked and then essentially how he discovers himself again.”

A father-daughter relationship rooted in respect

Despite the tension between Teela and Duncan, both actors emphasized that love and mutual respect remain at the center of their relationship.

“First of all, there’s no man explaining with Camila, OK? That ain’t happening,” Elba joked. “And then there was certainly that dynamic between the two of them, but there’s always love at the heart of it. Even when she’s snappy at him, I think there’s love at the—”

Mendes added that Teela’s strength is deeply tied to wanting validation from her father.

“Deep down, there’s a lot of respect because I feel like she wants him to be proud of her,” she said. “I really feel that. That she’s become this tough fighter because she wants him to look at her and be like, ‘Wow, look at the strong daughter that I raised.’”

Directed by Travis Knight, Masters of the Universe stars Nicholas Galitzine, Camila Mendes, Alison Brie, James Purefoy, Morena Baccarin, Jóhannes Haukur Jóhannesson, Charlotte Riley, Kristen Wiig as the voice of Roboto, Jared Leto and Idris Elba.

In Masters of the Universe, Prince Adam (Galitzine) returns to Eternia after 15 years to find the kingdom overtaken by Skeletor (Leto). To save his world, Adam teams up with Teela and Duncan and embraces his destiny as He-Man.