He has the power!

Cosplayer shares fitness journey as iconic 80’s children’s cartoon hero

- By ICA HONTIVEROS-CHENG

In the cosplay scene, Prince de Guzman is known as the “Cosplay Prince of Horror” because of his transformations into characters like Pennywise, Valak, and other creatures that have fueled nightmares.

Prince recently answered the challenge of a different kind of cosplay with the same passion, dedication, and discipline that have gained him followers and fans: He took the Sword of Power in his hands, transforming into He-Man as part of Columbia Pictures’ promotional tour for the movie Masters of the Universe, where Prince visited cinemas and toy stores, interacting with visitors as the beloved 80s hero.

But unlike Prince’s horror transformations, which rely on heavy makeup and prosthetics, stepping into the shoes of He-Man meant bulking up and getting in shape to capture the character’s famous muscular physique, a transformation that took six months.

“When I found out that Masters of the Universe was showing exactly on my birthday, I swore that I would give myself a better, healthier body. I consider the chance to cosplay He-Man as my 30th birthday present,” Prince said. “I have always wanted to cosplay as He-Man.”

“When I was young, I was tall and lanky, and people would tease me about it. I was so thin that my parents would bring me to the doctor just to check that everything was okay,” Prince said. “I wanted to try doing sports, but I was afraid that people would tease me because I was so thin, so when I was fifteen years old, I decided to start on my fitness journey.”