The Boys (2019 TV series)

The Boys is an American superhero streaming television series developed by Eric Kripke for Amazon Prime Video. Based on the comic book of the same name by Garth Ennis and Darick Robertson, which was originally published by DC Comics under their Wildstorm imprint before moving to Dynamite Entertainment; it follows the eponymous team of vigilantes as they combat superpowered individuals who abuse their abilities. The series stars an ensemble cast that includes Karl Urban, Jack Quaid, Laz Alonso, Tomer Capon and Karen Fukuhara as the titular vigilantes, and Antony Starr, Erin Moriarty, Dominique McElligott, Chace Crawford, Jessie T. Usher and Nathan Mitchell as members of the "Seven", an official superhero group run by the conglomerate Vought International.
The series premiered on July 26, 2019. The series has received acclaim for its writing, storyline, humor, and the performances of the cast, particularly Urban and Starr. Ahead of the premiere, Amazon renewed "The Boys" for a second season, which premiered on September 4, 2020. A third season has also been ordered, and a spin-off series is in development.
Premise.
"The Boys" is set in a universe where superpowered individuals are recognized as heroes by the general public and work for the powerful corporation Vought International, which markets and monetizes them. Outside of their heroic personas, most are arrogant and corrupt. The series primarily focuses on two groups: the Seven, Vought's premier superhero team, and the eponymous Boys, vigilantes looking to bring down Vought and its corrupt superheroes.
The Boys are led by Billy Butcher, who despises all superpowered people, and the Seven are led by the narcissistic and violent Homelander. At the start of the series, the Boys are joined by Hughie Campbell after a member of the Seven accidentally kills his girlfriend, while the Seven are joined by Annie January, a young and hopeful heroine forced to face the truth about those she admires. Other members of the Seven include the disillusioned Queen Maeve, drug-addicted A-Train, the insecure Deep, the mysterious Black Noir, and white supremacist Stormfront. The Boys are rounded out by tactical planner Mother's Milk, weapons specialist Frenchie, and superpowered test subject Kimiko. Overseeing the Seven is Vought executive Madelyn Stillwell, who is later succeeded by publicist Ashley Barrett. 
The first season depicts the initial conflict between the Boys and the Seven, which is motivated by Butcher believing Homelander caused his wife Becca's disappearance. While Homelander and Stillwell conspire to receive government support for superheroes, the Boys attempt to stop them by uncovering Vought's secrets. Initially unaware of each other's affiliations, Hughie and Annie muddle the conflict when they enter into a romantic relationship, despite Butcher's distrust of her.
In the second season, the Boys continue their efforts to defeat Vought in spite of being wanted by the government. A new development in the conflict arises when Butcher learns Vought is holding Becca captive with a superpowered son fathered by Homelander. As Butcher attempts to rescue his wife, Stormfront promotes her white supremacist message throughout the Seven, seeking to have Homelander lead the superpowered to world domination.
Cast and characters.
Guest.
Introduced in season 1.
Jimmy Fallon, Mike Massaro, Billy Zane, Seth Rogen, and Tara Reid appear as themselves.
Introduced in season 2.
Kym Wyatt McKenzie and Birgitte Solem portray Butcher and Stillwell in a reenactment of the latter's death. Greg Zajac, Anthony Lake, and Dylan Moscovitch play pornographic impersonators of Homelander, Jack from Jupiter, and the Deep. Chris Hansen, Maria Menounos, Greg Grunberg, Nancy O'Dell, Katie Couric, and Christopher Lennertz appear as themselves.
Production.
Development.
Between 2008 and 2016, a film adaptation of "The Boys" had been in various stages of development at both Columbia Pictures and Paramount Pictures.
On April 6, 2016, it was announced that Cinemax was developing a television series adaptation of the comic book. The production was being developed by Eric Kripke, Evan Goldberg, and Seth Rogen. Kripke was set to write the series while Goldberg and Rogen were set to direct. Executive producers were reported to include Kripke, Goldberg, Rogen, Neal H. Moritz, Pavun Shetty, Ori Marmur, James Weaver, Ken Levin, and Jason Netter. Garth Ennis and Darick Robertson were set as co-executive producers. Production companies involved with the series included Point Grey Pictures, Original Film, and Sony Pictures Television.
On November 8, 2017, it was announced that Amazon Video had given the production a series order for a first season consisting of eight episodes. The series had reportedly been in development at Amazon for a number of months preceding the series order announcement. It was also reported that the previously announced creative team was still attached to the series.
Kripke wanted to retain a sense of reality to the show, and to keep the writers disciplined decided "Anything that comes out of this drug is viable, and anything that doesn't we're not allowed to do". He did not want to fall into the overused convention of killing off female characters to motivate the heroes and also saw an opportunity to surprise readers of the comics by changing the story of Butcher's wife Becky.
On April 30, 2018, it was announced that Dan Trachtenberg would direct the series' first episode. He replaces Seth Rogen and Evan Goldberg who dropped out due to scheduling conflicts.
Ahead of the series premiere, on July 19, 2019, it was announced that Amazon Video had renewed the series for a second season. The eight scripts for the second season were completed by November 2019.
Ahead of the second season premiere, on July 23, 2020, Amazon renewed the series for a third season at the aftershow hosted by Aisha Tyler for San Diego Comic-Con@Home. The third season began filming in early 2021 with an unknown release date.
Casting.
On December 18, 2017, it was announced that Erin Moriarty has been cast in the lead role of Annie January/Starlight. On January 17, 2018, it was reported that Antony Starr, Dominique McElligott, Chace Crawford, Jessie Usher, and Nathan Mitchell had joined the main cast. In March 2018, it was announced that Laz Alonso, Jack Quaid, and Karen Fukuhara had been cast in series regular roles. On April 5, 2018, it was reported that Karl Urban had been cast in the series' lead role of Billy Butcher. On May 16, 2018, it was announced that Elisabeth Shue had been cast in the series regular role of Madelyn Stillwell. On June 25, 2018, it was reported that Tomer Kapon had joined the main cast in the role of Frenchie. On August 30, 2018, it was announced that Jennifer Esposito had been cast in the recurring role of CIA Agent Susan Raynor. On October 5, 2018, it was announced during the annual New York Comic Con that Simon Pegg had been cast in the role of Hughie's father. According to the artist Robertson, Hughie was drawn in the comics to resemble Pegg after he saw Pegg in the sitcom "Spaced", but Pegg thought he was too old to play the role of Hughie in the TV series.
On September 5, 2019, Goran Višnjić and Claudia Doumit were cast in recurring roles for the second season. A month later, Patton Oswalt was announced in an unspecified role. Aya Cash was confirmed to be portraying superhero Stormfront in March 2020 following contract negotiations that began when the second season was announced. On August 10, 2020, it was reported that Shawn Ashmore was cast as Lamplighter for the second season. A week later, Jensen Ackles joined the cast for the third season as Soldier Boy. On October 30, 2020, Claudia Doumit was promoted as a series regular for the third season. On March 26, 2021, Katia Winter joined the cast in the recurring role of Little Nina for the third season.
Filming.
Principal photography for the first season began on May 22, 2018, in Toronto, and was scheduled to last until September 25, 2018. Principal photography for the second season took place from June 17 to November 13, 2019, in Toronto. Filming for the third season began on February 24, 2021 and is scheduled to conclude in September 2021.
Music.
The score for "The Boys" was composed by Christopher Lennertz.
Release.
On September 26, 2018, the official poster for the series was released. On October 5, 2018, in tandem with the series' panel at the annual New York Comic Con, a teaser trailer for the series was released. On January 24, 2019, another teaser trailer was released via Seth Rogen's official Twitter account. The series premiered on July 26, 2019, after another teaser was released. On July 22, Slipknot released a new single called "Solway Firth" with an accompanying music video which featured clips and audio from the show. On June 26, 2020, it was announced that season two would debut on September 4, 2020, with the first 3 episodes available immediately and the rest debuting on a weekly basis. The second season's official trailer was released on August 4, 2020.
A companion short film titled "Butcher" set between the first and second season was released on September 10, 2020, with Karl Urban reprising his role as Billy Butcher. Characters from "The Boys" also appeared in an episode of "Death Battle" sponsored by Prime Video, which was released on September 17, 2020.
Reception.
Season 1.
On Rotten Tomatoes, the first season holds an approval rating of 84% based on 101 reviews, with an average rating of 7.65/10. The website's critical consensus reads, "Though viewers' mileage may vary, "The Boys" violent delights and willingness to engage in heavy, relevant themes are sure to please those looking for a new group of antiheroes to root for." On Metacritic, it has a weighted average score of 74 out of 100, based on reviews from 19 critics, indicating "generally favorable reviews".
Christopher Lawrence of the "Las Vegas Review-Journal" wrote: "Irreverent, deliciously cynical, "The Boys" follows the greed and corruption behind the superhero industrial complex." Matthew Gilbert of "Boston Globe" wrote: "The cast is fine, particularly Shue, who is icily effective; Quaid, whose neurotic but brave fumblings are endearing; and Urban, who is Hughie's gonzo guide." Kristy Puchko at IGN gives the first episode a score of 7.2/10 and appreciates how the story comes from the comics but with clever changes. Puchko praises the cast, particularly "Moriarty brings a nuance to her performance that refuses to let Starlight feel like a two-dimensional damsel. She's not naïve. She's hopeful. And she's a fighter. "The Boys" makes all of that clear in short order." She concludes ""The Boys" could still be a thrilling ride as it subverts the expectations of the family-friendly genre, with dark twists and unapologetically graphic scenes of sex and violence. The premiere ep has a lot of heavy lifting to do in exposition, yet Kripke works in some stunner moments, jolts of fun, and stellar action sequences." Liz Shannon Miller of AV Club wrote: "Karl Urban proves to be a thoroughly committed performer as Billy Butcher, whose dedication to taking down "supes" of course has a personal edge, but then again, when you see what men like the blatantly fake and evil Homelander (Antony Starr) are getting up to it makes sense that he's devoted his life to taking down the cause."
Season 2.
On Rotten Tomatoes, the second season holds an approval rating of 97% based on 98 reviews, with an average rating of 8.03/10. The website's critical consensus reads, ""The Boys" comes out swinging in a superb second season that digs deeper into its complicated characters and ups the action ante without pulling any of its socially critical punches." On Metacritic, the season has a weighted average score of 80 out of 100, based on 15 critics, indicating "generally favorable reviews".
Eric Deggans of NPR described the second season as "a wonderfully subversive, cynically entertaining piece of work".
On Amazon, season 2 of the series saw initial audience review bombing with 49% of 1400 reviews left by September 6, 2020, providing a one-star rating, most of which praised the available episodes but criticized Amazon's weekly release schedule.
At the 1st Critics' Choice Super Awards, the series received five nominations: Best Superhero Series, Best Actor in a Superhero Series (Starr, Urban), Best Actress in a Superhero Series (Cash) and Best Villain in a Series (Starr), completely sweeping its genre at the event.
Audience viewership.
In October 2019, Nielsen announced it had begun tracking viewership of Amazon Prime programs. It said "The Boys" had attracted 8million total viewers in its first 10 days of release, making it one of the most successful original programs on Amazon Prime.
Spin-offs.
"G-Men" spin-off.
On September 24, 2020, it was announced that a spin-off centered on a superhero college had been fast-tracked into development upon the ratings success of the series' second season. Described as being "part college show, part "Hunger Games"", the spin-off is to be set "...at America’s only college exclusively for young adult superheroes (and run by Vought International), the [spin-off] is described as an irreverent, R-rated series that explores the lives of hormonal, competitive Supes as they put their physical, sexual, and moral boundaries to the test, competing for the best contracts in the best cities." On October 2, 2020, Kripke stated the series would focus on the G-Men team from the comic series mentioned in the first season, a parody of the X-Men. In March 2021, Lizze Broadway, Jaz Sinclair, Shane Paul McGhie, Aimee Carrero, and Maddie Phillips were cast to star. On April 15, 2021, Reina Hardesty joined the main cast.
"Supe Porn".
On October 3, 2020, Eric Kripke confirmed that the in-universe pornographic superhero film scenes briefly glimpsed in the second season "The Boys" episode "Butcher, Baker, Candlestick Maker" had been produced in full, expressing interest in releasing them under the name "Supe Porn" to the website of the same name, registered to Sony Pictures, as well as formally requesting Seth Rogen, Evan Goldberg, Antony Starr and the other followers of his Twitter page to join him in petitioning Prime Video and Amazon Studios to allow the potential web series to be uploaded.