Kyle Allen – Up-and-Coming 'West Side Story' Actor Gets Breakout Role

Actor Kyle Allen is currently on screen as one of the Jets in Steven Spielberg's reworked "West Side Story." But the classically-trained, 27-year-old dancer and actor has landed a coveted role in an upcoming superhero franchise.

"Mattel and�Netflix�announced Friday that�Kyle Allen�– who recently appeared as Balkan in�'West Side Story'�–�will be portraying the beloved character in their upcoming live-action�'Masters of the Universe'�movie," reports People.

Based on the popular Mattel toys figures, it was previously adapted as a cartoon in the 1980s called "He-Man and the Masters of the Universe."�This led to a live-action 1987 film�"Masters of the Universe"�that starred�Dolph Lundgren�as He-Man.

The story in the new film will follow "an orphan named Adam" who "discovers he is a prince destined to be the savior of a faraway land and must quickly learn of his power and the importance of saving his true home from an evil force," a press release says.

Next month Allen co-stars with Joey King in the supernatural drama "The In Between" that airs on Paramount+ on February 11. In the film the pair play lovers separated by a tragic death who reconnect. And expect to see Allen in a number of other projects before "Masters of the Universe." He recently completed filming on two projects. One is revisionist, rom-com take on "Romeo and Juliet" called "Rosaline," in which he co-stars with Kaitlyn Dever and Isabella Merced." The second is a featured role in "The Greatest Beer Run Ever," a war drama directed by Peter Farrelly with Zac Efron, Russell Crowe and Bill Murray.

And fans of "American Horror Story" remember him from Season 8, "Apocalypse" in the role of Timothy Campbell. PopBuzz described his character as "an inhabitant of the Outpost Three bunker who was hand-picked by The Cooperative because of his perfect DNA. At the end of the season (and in the new timeline), Timothy and Emily have a son who turns out to be the new Antichrist."

He also played the role of Hawk Lane on Hulu's "The Path," co-starring Michelle Monaghan, Aaron Paul and Hugh Dancy. Hawk Lane is the son of Monaghan's character.

No doubt his training as a classical ballet dancer for five years at the Kirov Academy of Ballet and his work with the San Francisco Ballet where he was a company member made him a natural for Spielberg's reboot.�

"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," adds People.

"'Masters of the Universe' is set to begin production this summer. It will be directed by brothers Aaron and Adam Nee ('Band of Robbers',�'The Lost City'), who will also co-write the script alongside�'Shang-Chi and the Legend of the Ten Rings'�and�'Wonder Woman 1984'�scribe David Callaham.
"With our partners at Netflix, we look forward to showing audiences that anything can happen in Eternia," Mattel Films executive producer Robbie Brenne says in the release. "We are continuing to unlock this global franchise in new ways, and we can't wait to see Kyle battle it out with Skeletor in this epic live-action saga."

Check out these pics from Allen's Instagram: