The Boys is an American satirical superhero television series developed by Eric Kripke for Amazon Prime Video. Based on the comic book of the same namebyGarth Ennis and Darick Robertson, it follows the eponymous team of vigilantes as they combat superpowered individuals, known as "Supes", who abuse their powers for personal gain and work for a powerful company that ensures the general public views them as heroes. The series features an ensemble cast that includes Karl Urban, Jack Quaid, Antony Starr, Erin Moriarty, Dominique McElligott, Jessie T. Usher, Chace Crawford, Laz Alonso, Tomer Capone, Karen Fukuhara, and Nathan Mitchell.
The Boys | |
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Genre |
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Based on | |
Developed by | Eric Kripke |
Showrunner | Eric Kripke |
Starring |
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Composers |
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Country of origin | United States |
Original language | English |
No. of seasons | 4 |
No. of episodes | 29 |
Production | |
Executive producers |
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Producers |
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Production locations | Hamilton, Ontario, Canada and Toronto, Ontario, Canada |
Cinematography |
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Editors |
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Camera setup | Single-camera |
Running time | 55–68 minutes[1] |
Production companies |
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Budget | $11.2 million per episode (season 1) |
Original release | |
Network | Amazon Prime Video |
Release | July 26, 2019 (2019-07-26) – present (present) |
Related | |
The Boys (franchise) |
Originally intended to be a feature-length film trilogy, the comic book series adaptation began its development in 2008, with Adam McKay set to direct the films. Due to creative differences between the crew and the studios that picked it up, the project was left in development hell. Eventually, the development for The Boys was revived in 2016 by Cinemax, which announced that it would be reworked as a television series. Kripke was recruited to be the showrunner of the series, while Seth Rogen and Evan Goldberg would be credited as executive producers. Amazon Studios obtained the rights for the series in November 2017, with production starting in May 2018 in Toronto, Canada.
The Boys premiered its first season of eight episodes on July 26, 2019. A second season premiered on September 4, 2020, with the third season following on June 3, 2022. In June 2022, the series was renewed for a fourth season, which premiered on June 13, 2024. In May 2024, the series was renewed for a fifth and final season. As part of a shared universe, a spin-off web series, Seven on 7, premiered on July 7, 2021, an animated anthology series, Diabolical, premiered on March 4, 2022, and the second live-action television series, Gen V, premiered on September 29, 2023.
The series has been nominated for eight Primetime Emmy Awards, including Outstanding Drama Seriesin2021, and has won six Astra TV Awards and seven Critics' Choice Super Awards.
The Boys is set in a universe where superpowered individuals (referred to as "Supes") are recognized as heroes by the general public and work for Vought International, a powerful corporation that markets and monetizes them. Outside their heroic personas, most are corrupt and self-serving. The series primarily focuses on two groups: "The Seven", Vought's premier superhero team, and "The Boys", vigilantes looking to bring down Vought and its corrupt superheroes.
Season | Episodes | Originally released | ||
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First released | Last released | |||
1 | 8 | July 26, 2019 (2019-07-26) | ||
2 | 8 | September 4, 2020 (2020-09-04) | October 9, 2020 (2020-10-09) | |
3 | 8 | June 3, 2022 (2022-06-03) | July 8, 2022 (2022-07-08) | |
4[24] | 8 | June 13, 2024 (2024-06-13) | July 18, 2024 (2024-07-18) |
No. overall | No.in season | Title | Directed by | Written by | Original release date |
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1 | 1 | "The Name of the Game" | Dan Trachtenberg | Eric Kripke | July 26, 2019 (2019-07-26) |
2 | 2 | "Cherry" | Matt Shakman | Eric Kripke | July 26, 2019 (2019-07-26) |
3 | 3 | "Get Some" | Phil Sgriccia | George Mastras | July 26, 2019 (2019-07-26) |
4 | 4 | "The Female of the Species" | Fred Toye | Craig Rosenberg | July 26, 2019 (2019-07-26) |
5 | 5 | "Good for the Soul" | Stefan Schwartz | Anne Cofell Saunders | July 26, 2019 (2019-07-26) |
6 | 6 | "The Innocents" | Jennifer Phang | Rebecca Sonnenshine | July 26, 2019 (2019-07-26) |
7 | 7 | "The Self-Preservation Society" | Dan Attias | Craig Rosenberg & Ellie Monahan | July 26, 2019 (2019-07-26) |
8 | 8 | "You Found Me" | Eric Kripke | Anne Cofell Saunders & Rebecca Sonnenshine | July 26, 2019 (2019-07-26) |
No. overall | No.in season | Title | Directed by | Written by | Original release date |
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9 | 1 | "The Big Ride" | Phil Sgriccia | Eric Kripke | September 4, 2020 (2020-09-04) |
10 | 2 | "Proper Preparation and Planning" | Liz Friedlander | Rebecca Sonnenshine | September 4, 2020 (2020-09-04) |
11 | 3 | "Over the Hill with the Swords of a Thousand Men" | Steve Boyum | Craig Rosenberg | September 4, 2020 (2020-09-04) |
12 | 4 | "Nothing Like It in the World" | Fred Toye | Michael Saltzman | September 11, 2020 (2020-09-11) |
13 | 5 | "We Gotta Go Now" | Batan Silva | Ellie Monahan | September 18, 2020 (2020-09-18) |
14 | 6 | "The Bloody Doors Off" | Sarah Boyd | Anslem Richardson | September 25, 2020 (2020-09-25) |
15 | 7 | "Butcher, Baker, Candlestick Maker" | Stefan Schwartz | Craig Rosenberg | October 2, 2020 (2020-10-02) |
16 | 8 | "What I Know" | Alex Graves | Rebecca Sonnenshine | October 9, 2020 (2020-10-09) |
No. overall | No.in season | Title | Directed by | Written by | Original release date |
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17 | 1 | "Payback" | Phil Sgriccia | Craig Rosenberg | June 3, 2022 (2022-06-03) |
18 | 2 | "The Only Man in the Sky" | Phil Sgriccia | David Reed | June 3, 2022 (2022-06-03) |
19 | 3 | "Barbary Coast" | Julian Holmes | Anslem Richardson & Geoff Aull | June 3, 2022 (2022-06-03) |
20 | 4 | "Glorious Five-Year Plan" | Julian Holmes | Meredith Glynn | June 10, 2022 (2022-06-10) |
21 | 5 | "The Last Time to Look on This World of Lies" | Nelson Cragg | Ellie Monahan | June 17, 2022 (2022-06-17) |
22 | 6 | "Herogasm" | Nelson Cragg | Jessica Chou | June 24, 2022 (2022-06-24) |
23 | 7 | "Here Comes a Candle to Light You to Bed" | Sarah Boyd | Paul Grellong | July 1, 2022 (2022-07-01) |
24 | 8 | "The Instant White-Hot Wild" | Sarah Boyd | Logan Ritchey & David Reed | July 8, 2022 (2022-07-08) |
No. overall | No.in season | Title [25] | Directed by | Written by [25] | Original release date [24] |
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25 | 1 | "Department of Dirty Tricks" | Phil Sgriccia | David Reed | June 13, 2024 (2024-06-13) |
26 | 2 | "Life Among the Septics" | Karen Gaviola | Jessica Chou | June 13, 2024 (2024-06-13) |
27 | 3 | "We'll Keep the Red Flag Flying Here" | Fred Toye | Ellie Monahan | June 13, 2024 (2024-06-13) |
28 | 4 | "Wisdom of the Ages" | Phil Sgriccia | Geoff Aull | June 20, 2024 (2024-06-20) |
29 | 5 | "Beware the Jabberwock, My Son" | Shana Stein | Judalina Neira | June 27, 2024 (2024-06-27) |
30 | 6 | "Dirty Business" | TBA | Anslem Richardson | July 4, 2024 (2024-07-04) |
31 | 7 | "The Insider" | TBA | Paul Grellong | July 11, 2024 (2024-07-11) |
32 | 8 | "Assassination Run" | Eric Kripke[26] | Jessica Chou & David Reed | July 18, 2024 (2024-07-18) |
A film adaptation of Garth Ennis's comic book series The Boys was in various stages of development between 2008 and 2016, initially at Columbia Pictures with Adam McKay directing and a budget of $100 million until the project was abandoned over creative differences between the studio and McKay. Paramount Pictures secured the rights in August 2012 and revived the production,[27][28][29] but in April 2016 the film adaptation was cancelled and it was announced that Cinemax would be developing a television series adaptation of the comic book instead. Evan Goldberg and Seth Rogen, who at the time were working on the series Preacher (also based on a comic book series by Ennis), were recruited as executive producers and directors for the pilot episode.[27] Eric Kripke, a longtime fan of Ennis's work, was hired as the series showrunner and head writer.[27]
In June 2024, Rogen and Goldberg recalled McKay's prior involvement and the original page-to-screen adaptation plan. It was revealed that there were serious plans to have The Boys become a three-film trilogy; the first film went as far as a finished screenplay and even demo animatics of scenes. However, the planned trilogy, like many superhero films in pre-MCU Hollywood, was scrapped. "I wouldn't change how it worked out because the show is amazing. But [McKay] was doing really cool stuff. It just came down to it being 2008, not 2018. I just don't think [Hollywood was] ready for it yet," explained The Boys comic book co-creator and illustrator Darick Robertson.[30][31][32][33][34]
In November 2017, Amazon Studios acquired the rights to the television adaptation after Cinemax chose not to move forward with it.[35][36][37][38] Sharon Tal Yguado, who had been hired that year to supervise future franchises made by Amazon, expressed her hopes that the series would offer a different take on the superhero genre at a time when Hollywood was saturated with superhero shows.[39] That same day, Amazon greenlit the production of the first season of eight episodes, each with an estimated budget of $11.2 million.[40] Production was expected to begin in spring of 2018 for a planned release in 2019.[41] Amazon also committed to a run of at least five seasons, in line with Kripke's plans,[42] hoping to replicate the success of hit genre dramas like Game of Thrones, Stranger Things, and The Walking Dead.[35]
Asecond season was announced in July 2019 at the San Diego Comic-Con a week before the series premiere,[43][44] with Kripke having already starting to write the scripts.[45] In December 2019, a teaser trailer confirmed that the second season would be released in 2020,[46] and another trailer released in June 2020 confirmed that it would premiere that September.[47][48][49] Seeking to make the series a topic of conversation for longer, and hoping to replicate the success of multiple series, Kripke and the producers convinced Amazon to release episodes on a weekly basis.[50][51][52]
Athird season was announced at the after-show for San Diego Comic-Con@Home in 2020.[53][54] Kripke revealed in October 2020 that he was writing the scripts for the third season,[55] shortly after Amazon had announced the spin-off series Gen V (2023–present),[56][57] which served as a bridge between the third and fourth seasons of The Boys,[58][59] with the latter being announced in June 2022[60][61] and planned for release in 2024.[62]
On May 14, 2024, ahead of the fourth season premiere, Amazon announced that the series was renewed for a fifth season at the Amazon Upfront presentation.[63] On June 11, 2024, Kripke announced that the fifth season would serve as the series' final season.[64]
The series takes place in a universe where most of the superpowered people (referred to as "Supes") pretend to be heroic to ensure that they are loved by the public, while working for Vought which is a company that monetizes and markets them, but in reality, outside their heroic personas, they are actually corrupt celebrities who abuse their powers out of selfishness for personal gain, which serves as a deconstruction of the superhero genre and the idealisms of heroism that they are supposed to represent in contrast to Marvel and DC.[65][66] The series attempts to more realistically portray how superheroes would enmesh themselves into contemporary culture, with many of them having an influence as political figures, over-worshipped celebrities, and profitable marketing tools for a hyper-consumerist society.[67] Many of the "Supes" that appear in the series are also a direct parody from very popular superheroes from Marvel and DC intending to give them more depraved, problematic and realistic counterparts, with each season introducing a new "Supe" that is based from a popular superheroic character.[68][69]
Despite keeping its faithfulness to the source material, the series does not fully follow the storyline from the comic book series in order to retain a sense of realism, given that Kripke considered that some of the concepts and characters from the comics were too fantastical for their portrayal in the television adaptation and put rules to the writers in order to oversee what ideas would be allowed to use and the other ones that would not.[70][71] Another reason for the changes realized to the adaptation was because of the difference between the period where the comic book and the television adaptation take place with the former taking place at the 2000s and the latter at the late 2010s respectively, to which Kripke and the writers deemed that it would be impossible to adapt to the series as it would not fit into the story of the series.[72]
Kripke originally intended for the series to make it run for five seasons as he developed some ideas that could be explored in the fourth and fifth seasons by starting to conclude some of the storylines of the show for the third-season finale.[73] He considered that the ideas he was developing for the television adaptation were enough to be developed for five seasons with further adaptations of the comic book series being adapted in planned spin-offs that would take place in the same universe of the main series.[42][74] Following the success and renewal for its spin-off series Gen V, which would connect the third and fourth seasons of the series, Kripke revealed that he was reconsidering his original plans and admitted that the main series could run beyond five seasons given its success, while also mocking his similar initial plans he had for another series where he also served as showrunner Supernatural: "I have since realized that literally no one in history is worse at predicting the amount of seasons of a show, like literally. I have learned my lesson and I've stopped predicting how many seasons these shows go. You will find out in hindsight."[75]
Middle: Erin Moriarty, Dominique McElligott, and Jessie T. Usher
In December 2017, it was announced that Erin Moriarty had been cast in the lead role of Annie January / Starlight.[6] In January 2018, it was reported that Antony Starr, Dominique McElligott, Chace Crawford, Jessie T. Usher, and Nathan Mitchell had joined the main cast.[5] In March 2018, it was announced that Laz Alonso, Jack Quaid, and Karen Fukuhara had been cast in series regular roles.[4][7][10] In April 2018, it was reported that Karl Urban had been cast in the series' lead role of Billy Butcher.[3] In May 2018, it was announced that Elisabeth Shue had been cast in the series regular role of Madelyn Stillwell.[12] In June 2018, it was reported that Tomer Kapon had joined the main cast in the role of Frenchie.[9] In August 2018, it was announced that Jennifer Esposito had been cast in the recurring role of CIA Agent Susan Raynor.[76] In October 2018, it was announced during the annual New York Comic Con that Simon Pegg had been cast in the role of Hughie's father.[77] According to 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.[78]
In July 2019, alongside the renewal of the second season it was announced that Aya Cash would be joining the series as a gender-swapped version of Stormfront following contract negotiations that began when the second season was announced.[43][79] The reason why Stormfront was changed was in order to make the character of Homelander feel even more hurt from having his spotlight stolen.[80] In September 2019, Goran Višnjić and Claudia Doumit were cast in recurring roles for the second season.[81] A month later, Patton Oswalt was announced in an unspecified role,[82] later revealed to be the voice of The Deep's gills.[8]
In August 2020, it was reported that Shawn Ashmore was cast as Lamplighter for the second season.[83] A week later, Jensen Ackles joined the cast for the third season as Soldier Boy.[16][84] The character of Soldier Boy would be different from the comics as he would be portrayed as the "Homelander before Homelander" probably even worse than him.[85][86] In October 2020, Claudia Doumit and Colby Minifie were promoted to series regulars for the third season.[13]
In March 2021, Katia Winter joined the cast in the recurring role of Little Nina for the third and fourth season.[87] In June 2021, Miles Gaston Villanueva, Sean Patrick Flanery, and Nick Wechsler were cast as Supersonic, Gunpowder, and Blue Hawk, respectively, for the third season in undisclosed capacities.[88] Two days later, Laurie Holden joined the cast as Crimson Countess in a recurring role for the third season.[89] In October 2021, Frances Turner, Kristin Booth, and Jack Doolan joined the cast as Monique and twins Tessa and Tommy, a.k.a. the TNT Twins, in recurring roles for the third season.[90]
In July 2022, it was announced Nathan Mitchell (who portrayed the masked Black Noir in the first three seasons), despite his character's death in the third-season finale, would continue to portray Black Noir but as a new entity of the character (Black Noir II) in a main capacity in the fourth season of the series.[11] In August 2022, it was reported that Cameron Crovetti had been promoted as a series regular while Valorie Curry and Susan Heyward were cast as new series regulars for the fourth season as Sister Sage and Firecracker, respectively.[18][20][21] Later that month, Jeffrey Dean Morgan was cast in an undisclosed role, later to be revealed as Joe Kessler.[22][23][91] In December 2022, Rob Benedict and Elliot Knight joined the cast in undisclosed capacities for the fourth season,[92] alongside Rosemarie DeWitt, who was revealed to play Hughie's mom.[93][94][95]
In June 2024, Paul Reiser confirmed that he will reprise his role as The Legend for the fifth and final season.[96]
Although situated in New York City like in the comics, it was confirmed the series would be filmed in Toronto, Canada.[97] In November 2017, it was announced that the filming for the series was slated to begin filming in 2018 with the hopes of releasing it in 2019. Though the series was mainly shot in Toronto, it was confirmed that additional filming would also be taking place across the Golden Horseshoe area, including Mississauga and Hamilton.[35][98]
The filming for the first season started on May 22, 2018, mainly filmed at Toronto with many of the crew filming at several tourist locations, such as the Roy Thomson Hall, the Yonge–Dundas Square, Lower Bay Station, and the Sherbourne Common. In order to make it look like New York City and create the fictional places of the series such as The Seven Tower intending to capture the series universe, several of these locations were digitally altered through CGI including the interiors of several buildings, with several rooms being digitally altered and extended. Another places of interest picked up were the Sherbourne Common, the Cathedral Church of St. James, and the Parkwood Estate.[99][100] Filming for the first season wrapped on October 11, 2018.[101]
The filming for the second season started on July 17, 2019,[102] and followed the similar strategy of being filmed at touristic locations and being edited with CGI. Some of this place of interests include the Meridian Arts Centre, the Wet 'n' Wild Toronto Waterpark, and the Scottish Rite Club. To create the Sage Grove psychiatric hospital, the crew filmed at the Southwest Centre for Forensic Mental Health Care complex.[99][103] Filming was also at the Mel Lastman Square but eventually the crew were relocated by the Toronto City Council as the location was close to the place where the Toronto van attack occurred on April 23, 2018. This happened to avoid hurting the sentiments of the citizens of Toronto.[104][105] Filming for the second season wrapped on November 15, 2019.[106]
The filming for the third season started on February 24, 2021.[102][107] The filming for the season was not affected by the COVID-19 pandemic, though several precautions were implemented to ensure the safety of the cast and crew.[108][109] The new filming locations included for the season were Metro Toronto Convention Centre, the Saint George Manor, and Canada's Wonderland Medieval Faire.[99] Filming for the third season wrapped on September 10, 2021.[110]
The filming for the fourth season started on August 22, 2022.[111] Pegg concluded filming his scenes on January 18, 2023.[112] Filming on the finale began on February 12,[113] with Starr concluding filming his scenes on April 4.[114] Filming for the fourth season wrapped on April 12, 2023.[115]
Score albums have been released for each season of the series by Madison Gate Records. Christopher Lennertz served as composer of the show's score.[116][117] During an interview at the 2019 San Diego Comic-Con, he stated that his work for The Boys was the "craziest thing" he has ever done, after collaborating with Rogen for Sausage Party (2016).[118] For the second season's soundtrack, Moriarty provides her own vocals for the song "Never Truly Vanish", which was nominated for the Primetime Emmy Award for Outstanding Original Music and Lyrics.[119] The music video for "Never Truly Vanish" was released on YouTube on June 4, 2021.[120] Usher also performed an original song for the second season's soundtrack and, on September 1, 2021, the music video for "Faster" was released on YouTube.[121] The third season's soundtrack includes two songs performed by Miles Gaston Villanueva, "You've Got a License to Drive (Me Crazy)" and "Rock My Kiss", while Holden performed "America's Son" which were released on June 3, 2022.[122] On June 17, 2022, another video was released for a song performed by Holden: "Chimps Don't Cry".[123] The fourth season includes an original song titled "Let's Put the Christ Back in Christmas", which was performed by Shoshana Bean, James Monroe Iglehart, Andrew Rannells and the cast of the fictional "Vought on Ice" figure skating performers.[124] On June 14, 2024, the music video for "Let's Put the Christ Back in Christmas" was released on YouTube.[125] An official website for "Vought on Ice" was also created.[126]
The series explores issues like systemic racism, white nationalism, white supremacy, and xenophobia, with Kripke seeing an opportunity to introduce Stormfront, a racist superhero who believes in Nazism.[127][128] Kripke stated that unlike the comics where Stormfront is male, the character would be gender-swapped for the series with the intention of creating "Homelander's worst nightmare that would be a strong woman who wasn't afraid of him and proceeded to steal his spotlight".[129] The show contains political satire, and many consider the show to be a critique of conservatism and far-right politics.[130][131] The show has also made references to corporate corruption, homophobia, police brutality, and sexual harassment.[132][133] Various analogies have been made to current social and political movements, such as Black Lives Matter, the MeToo movement, and comparing Homelander to Donald Trump.[134][135][a] Promotional materials for the fourth season included the quotes "Make America Super Again" and "Supe Lives Matter", likely a parody of the slogans "Black Lives Matter" and "Make America Great Again", respectively.[142] Some of the showrunners have said that these analogies are intentional and made to cast a political message.[143][144] In June 2024, Kripke described the series as a "story about the intersection of celebrity and authoritarianism and how social media and entertainment are used to sell fascism".[145]
The Boys was initially planned to have all eight episodes of the first season released on Amazon Prime Video on July 26, 2019,[146] but it instead premiered just a few hours earlier despite keeping the former date as the official one.[147] The second season, also consisting of eight episodes, was confirmed that it would be released on a weekly basis (instead of releasing the entire season all at once), debuting the first three episodes on September 4, 2020, and the remaining debuting on a weekly basis until the season finale on October 9.[148]
On January 6, 2022, it was reported that the third season would premiere on June 3, 2022, with the first three episodes available immediately and the rest debuting on a weekly basis until the season finale on July 8.[149] The fourth season premiered on June 13, 2024.[24]
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.[150][151] Characters from The Boys also appeared in an episode of Death Battle!, sponsored by Prime Video, which was released on September 17, 2020.[152][153]
The first three seasons were all released on physical media. Originally set to come out on May 17, 2022, the first two seasons were released on Blu-ray and DVD, in a six-disc box set by Sony Pictures Home Entertainment, on May 31, 2022. The two-season collection includes special features such as deleted/extended scenes and blooper reels; season two's bonus content also includes Butcher: A Short Film.[154][155][156] Season 3 was released on October 24, 2023; special features include gag reels and deleted/extended scenes, as well as "The Making of Featurette".[157][158][159]
Season | Rotten Tomatoes | Metacritic |
---|---|---|
1 | 85% (106 reviews)[160] | 74 (19 reviews)[161] |
2 | 97% (105 reviews)[162] | 80 (15 reviews)[163] |
3 | 98% (152 reviews)[164] | 77 (20 reviews)[165] |
4 | 93% (88 reviews)[166] | 76 (22 reviews)[167] |
The Boys received critical acclaim, although the series's political aspects have been divisive and a major talking point, particularly for its fourth season.[b] The series has an overall rating of 93% on Rotten Tomatoes[171] and a score of 76 on Metacritic.[172] Many critics and publications have called it among the best Amazon Prime Video series of all time.[c] Starr's portrayal of Homelander has also received much critical acclaim, with numerous critics calling it one of the best performances on television.[d]
On Rotten Tomatoes, the first season holds an approval rating of 85%, based on 106 reviews, with an average rating of 7.7/10. 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."[160] On Metacritic, the season holds a weighted average score of 74 out of 100, based on 19 critic reviews, indicating "generally favorable" reviews.[161]
On Rotten Tomatoes, the second season holds an approval rating of 97%, based on 105 reviews, with an average rating of 8.2/10. 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."[162] On Metacritic, the season holds a weighted average score of 80 out of 100, based on 15 critic reviews, indicating "generally favorable" reviews.[163]
On Rotten Tomatoes, the third season holds an approval rating of 98%, based on 152 reviews, with an average rating of 8.05/10. The website's critical consensus reads: "Managing to up the ante on what was already one of television's most audacious satires, The Boys' third season is both bracingly visceral and wickedly smart."[164] On Metacritic, the season holds a weighted average score of 77 out of 100, based on 20 critic reviews, indicating "generally favorable" reviews.[165]
On Rotten Tomatoes, the fourth season holds an approval rating of 93%, based on 88 reviews, with an average rating of 7.55/10. The website's critical consensus reads: "Boxing in the political arena with a bloodied smile, The Boys' fourth season is grim and even a little glum while holding up a cracked mirror towards modern society."[166] On Metacritic, the season holds a weighted average score of 76 out of 100, based on 22 critic reviews, indicating "generally favorable" reviews.[167] The season has received the most divisive and mixed reviews by critics.[e]
In October 2019, Nielsen announced it had begun tracking viewership of Amazon Prime Video programs. It said The Boys had attracted 8 million total viewers in its first 10 days of release, making it one of the most successful original programs on Prime Video.[188] For the second season, the first three episodes drew a 7.2% share of streams relative to the top 100 most-watched TV shows on Reelgood within its opening weekend, beating the third season of Stranger Things (5.8%) and The Mandalorian (4.4%).[189] The show's audience increased 89% compared to the first season. Nielsen ratings showed that 891 million minutes of the show had been watched, placing it number three on the Nielsen list, just behind Cobra Kai (2.17 billion minutes) and Lucifer (1.42 billion minutes).[190][191] It became the first non-Netflix show to appear on the Nielsen "Top 10 Streaming Shows" list.[192][193] The first three episodes of the fourth season received a 21% increase in total viewers compared to season three in the first four days since launch. Season four became among the Top 5 most-viewed TV seasons on Prime Video through its first four days, according to the streamer. It was also reported that season four tallied the second most viewers of any returning season on Prime Video through its first four days, behind only the second season of Reacher. Furthermore, Amazon reported that The Boys has grown in global viewership per season.[194]
For its second season, the series received a nomination for Outstanding Drama Series at the 73rd Primetime Emmy Awards in 2021, becoming the first-ever comic book television series adaptation to be nominated in that category, and received four additional nominations.[195][196][197][f] In 2022, PETA awarded the third-season episode "Barbary Coast" the "Tech, Not Terror" Award for using a CGI octopus.[198]
Year | Award | Category | Nominee(s) | Result | Ref. |
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2019 | Golden Trailer Awards | Best Action TV Spot / Trailer / Teaser for a Series | "Spank" (Amazon / Buddha Jones) | Won | [199][200] |
Best Sound Editing in a TV Spot / Trailer / Teaser for a Series | Nominated | ||||
2020 | Art Directors Guild Awards | Excellence in One-Hour Contemporary Single-Camera Series | Dave Blass (for "The Female of the Species") | Nominated | [201] |
Primetime Creative Arts Emmy Awards | Outstanding Sound Editing for a Comedy or Drama Series (One Hour) | Wade Barnett, David Barbee, Mason Kopeikin, Brian Dunlop, Ryan Briley, Chris Newlin, Christopher Brooks, Joseph T. Sabella, and Jesi Ruppel (for "The Name of the Game") |
Nominated | [202][203] | |
2021 | Artios Awards | Television Pilot and First Season – Drama | Eric Dawson, Carol Kritzer, Alex Newman, and Robert J. Ulrich; Location Casting: Sara Kay and Jenny Lewis | Nominated | [204] |
Black Reel Awards | Outstanding Guest Actor, Drama Series | Giancarlo Esposito | Nominated | [205] | |
British Fantasy Award | Best Film/Television Production | The Boys: "What I Know" (season 2, episode 8) written by Rebecca Sonnenshine and Eric Kripke |
Won | [206] | |
Critics' Choice Super Awards | Best Actor in a Superhero Series | Antony Starr | Won | [207] | |
Karl Urban | Nominated | ||||
Best Actress in a Superhero Series | Aya Cash | Won | |||
Best Superhero Series | The Boys | Won | |||
Best Villain in a Series | Antony Starr | Won | |||
Edgar Awards | Best Television Episode Teleplay | Rebecca Sonnenshine (for "What I Know") | Nominated | [208] | |
Golden Reel Awards | Outstanding Achievement in Sound Editing – Episodic Long Form – Music / Musical | Christopher Brooks (for "Nothing Like It in the World") | Nominated | [209] | |
Hollywood Critics Association TV Awards | Best Actor in a Streaming Series, Drama | Karl Urban | Nominated | [210] | |
Best Actress in a Streaming Series, Drama | Aya Cash | Nominated | |||
Best Streaming Series, Drama | The Boys | Nominated | |||
Best Supporting Actor in a Streaming Series, Drama | Giancarlo Esposito | Nominated | |||
MTV Movie & TV Awards | Best Fight | "Starlight, Queen Maeve, Kimiko vs. Stormfront" | Nominated | [211] | |
Best Hero | Jack Quaid | Nominated | |||
Best Show | The Boys | Nominated | |||
Best Villain | Aya Cash | Nominated | |||
Primetime Creative Arts Emmy Awards | Outstanding Original Music and Lyrics | "Never Truly Vanish" – Christopher Lennertz and Michael Saltzman (for "The Big Ride") | Nominated | [196][202][212] | |
Outstanding Sound Mixing for a Comedy or Drama Series (One Hour) | Alexandra Fehrman, Rich Weingart, and Thomas Hayek (for "What I Know") | Nominated | |||
Outstanding Special Visual Effects in a Season or a Movie | Stephan Fleet, Shalena Oxley-Butler, Kat Greene, Rian McNamara, Tony Kenny, Steve Moncur, Julian Hutchens, Anthony Paterson, and Keith Sellers | Nominated | |||
Primetime Emmy Awards | Outstanding Drama Series | Eric Kripke, Seth Rogen, Evan Goldberg, James Weaver, Neal H. Moritz, Pavun Shetty, Craig Rosenberg, Philip Sgriccia, Rebecca Sonnenshine, Ken F. Levin, Jason Netter, Garth Ennis, Darick Robertson, Michael Saltzman, Michaela Starr, Gabriel Garcia, and Hartley Gorenstein | Nominated | ||
Outstanding Writing for a Drama Series | Rebecca Sonnenshine (for "What I Know") | Nominated | |||
Satellite Awards | Best Television Series – Comedy or Musical | The Boys | Nominated | [213] | |
Saturn Awards | Best Performance by a Younger Actor in a Television Series | Erin Moriarty | Nominated | [214][215] | |
Best Superhero Adaptation Television Series | The Boys | Won | |||
Screen Actors Guild Awards | Outstanding Action Performance by a Stunt Ensemble in a Comedy or Drama Series | Marco Bianco, Matthew Bianco, James Binkley, Jack Birman, Christine Ebadi, James Eddy, Tig Fong, Jason Gosbee, John Kaye, JF Lachapelle, Irma Leong, Chris Mark, Jonathan Mcguire, Geoff Meech, Anita Nittoly, Moses Nyarko, Daryl Patchett, Geoff Scovell, and Steve Shackleton | Nominated | [216] | |
Writers Guild of America Awards | Television: Dramatic Series | Eric Kripke, Ellie Monahan, Anslem Richardson, Craig Rosenberg, Michael Saltzman, and Rebecca Sonnenshine | Nominated | [217] | |
2022 | Artios Awards | Television Series – Drama | Eric Dawson, Carol Kritzer, Alex Newman, and Robert J. Ulrich; Location Casting: Sara Kay and Jenny Lewis | Nominated | [218] |
Dragon Awards | Best Science Fiction or Fantasy TV Series | The Boys | Nominated | [219] | |
People's Choice Awards | The Bingeworthy Show of 2022 | Nominated | [220] | ||
Satellite Awards | Best Television Series – Drama | Nominated | [221] | ||
Saturn Awards | Best Action / Adventure Series (Streaming) | Won | [222][223][224] | ||
Best Actor in a Streaming Series | Antony Starr | Nominated | |||
Best Actress in a Streaming Series | Erin Moriarty | Nominated | |||
Best Guest Performance in a Streaming Series | Jensen Ackles | Nominated | |||
2023 | Astra Creative Arts TV Awards | Best Casting in a Drama Series | The Boys | Won | [225][226] |
Best Fantasy or Science Fiction Costumes | Nominated | ||||
Best Guest Actor in a Drama Series | Paul Reiser | Nominated | |||
Best Guest Actress in a Drama Series | Aya Cash | Nominated | |||
Best Stunts | The Boys | Won | |||
Astra TV Awards | Best Actor in a Streaming Drama Series | Antony Starr | Won | ||
Jack Quaid | Nominated | ||||
Best Actress in a Streaming Drama Series | Erin Moriarty | Nominated | |||
Karen Fukuhara | Nominated | ||||
Best Directing in a Streaming Drama Series | Nelson Cragg (for "Herogasm") | Won | |||
Best Streaming Drama Series | The Boys | Won | |||
Best Supporting Actor in a Streaming Drama Series | Chace Crawford | Nominated | |||
Jensen Ackles | Won | ||||
Best Writing in a Streaming Drama Series | Logan Ritchey and David Reed (for "The Instant White-Hot Wild") | Nominated | |||
Critics' Choice Awards | Best Actor in a Drama Series | Antony Starr | Nominated | [227][228] | |
Critics' Choice Super Awards | Best Actor in a Superhero Series, Limited Series, or Made-for-TV Movie | Won | [229] | ||
Best Actress in a Superhero Series, Limited Series, or Made-for-TV Movie | Erin Moriarty | Nominated | |||
Best Superhero Series, Limited Series, or Made-for-TV Movie | The Boys | Won | |||
Best Villain in a Series, Limited Series, or Made-for-TV Movie | Antony Starr | Won | |||
Golden Trailer Awards | Best Comedy / Drama TrailerByte for a TV / Streaming Series | "Destruction" (Ignition Creative London) | Nominated | [230] | |
Guild of Music Supervisors Awards | Best Music Supervision in a Trailer – Series | Deric Berberabe and Jordan Silverberg (for "Season Three – Full Trailer") | Nominated | [231] | |
Primetime Creative Arts Emmy Awards | Outstanding Sound Editing for a Comedy or Drama Series (One Hour) | Wade Barnett, Chris Kahwaty, Ryan Briley, Jeffrey A. Pitts, Pete Nichols, Christopher Brooks, and James Howe (for "The Instant White-Hot Wild") | Nominated | [202][232][233] | |
Outstanding Stunt Coordination for a Drama Series, Limited or Anthology Series, or Movie | John Koyama | Won | |||
Satellite Awards | Best Genre Series | The Boys | Won | [234][235] | |
Screen Actors Guild Awards | Outstanding Performance by a Stunt Ensemble in a Television Series | Cameron Ambridge, Jason Chu, Brian Patrick Collins, James Eddy, Steve Gagne, Evelyn Gonda, Kiralee Hayashi, John Koyama, Matt Leonard, Matt Rugetti, Geoff Scovell, and Maxwell Charles White | Nominated | [236] | |
Visual Effects Society Awards | Outstanding Visual Effects in a Photoreal Episode | Stephan Fleet, Shalena Oxley-Butler, Tristan Zerafa, Anthony Paterson, and Hudson Kenny (for "Payback") | Nominated | [237][238] | |
2024 | Artios Awards | Television Series – Drama | Eric Dawson, Carol Kritzer, and Robert J. Ulrich; Location Casting: Sara Kay and Jenny Lewis | Nominated | [239] |
On December 5, 2021, at the Brazil Comic-Con (CCXP), Amazon Prime Video announced that The Boys Presents: Diabolical, an animated anthology series, had been given an eight-episode series order.[240] On January 18, 2022, it was announced that the series would premiere on March 4, 2022.[241]
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)" and 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".[57] On October 2, 2020, Kripke stated the series would focus on the G-Men team of "We Gotta Go Now", originally created as a parody of Marvel Comics' X-Men for the fourth volume of Ennis' and Robertson's comic book story arc of the same name, that had been mentioned in the first season.[242] On September 27, 2021, the untitled spin-off was given a series order by Amazon Studios.[243] Filming of the series, titled Gen V, beginning at the University of Toronto in May 2022 and the Claireville Conservation Area, Brampton in July, intended for an October wrap.[244][245] The series premiered on September 29, 2023.[246] On October 19, 2023, it was renewed for a second season.[247]
On November 28, 2023, a new spinoff series was announced as in the works at Amazon. The Boys: Mexico is created by Gareth Dunnet-Alcocer, who produces alongside Diego Luna and Gael García Bernal.[248]
Ahead of the premiere of the third season, the series had released video segments in the form of in-universe news reports from the Vought News Network channel on YouTube, titled Seven on 7 with Cameron Coleman. Each of The Seven segments contains seven stories that tease events in upcoming episodes and introduce new cast members, and acts as a bridge between seasons 2 and 3. Matthew Edison, who plays news anchor Cameron Coleman, also appears in the third season of the series.[249]
On October 3, 2020, 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 fictional website of the same name (formerly registered to Sony Pictures),[250] as well as supposedly requesting Rogen, Goldberg, Starr and the other followers of his Twitter page to join him in petitioning Amazon Prime Video and Amazon Studios to allow the potential web series to be uploaded.[251] In June 2022, a fictional online "storefront" was added to the website, containing a collection of supe-inspired sex toys.[252] At the bottom of the website, there is a message stating that its contents are "for entertainment purpose only" and products are "not for sale".[250]
On June 9, 2022, an audiobook/podcast special titled The Boys: Deeper and Deeper was released as an Audible Original. The special takes the form of an in-universe interview with The Deep and his wife Cassandra about The Deep's memoir titled Deeper and the events in his life that are described in the memoir.[253]
In July 2023, Activision announced a collaboration between the Call of Duty video game franchise and The Boys, which features the addition of Starlight, Homelander and Black Noir as playable characters in Call of Duty: Modern Warfare II and Call of Duty: Warzone 2.0. Warzone 2.0 also features map updates that include adverts of The Seven, as well as a "Temp V" field upgrade that allows players to use one of four superpowers, based on other characters in the series.[254] A trailer for the collaboration was released on the Vought International YouTube channel, which depicts it as taking place in-universe prior to the end of the third season.[255] In November 2023, a second collaboration was announced for Call of Duty: Modern Warfare III, with A-Train and Firecracker joining the playable roster as part of the game's first seasonal content update.[256]
Homelander appeared as a playable character in the video game Mortal Kombat 1, modeled after Antony Starr and voiced by Jake Green. He is available via the "Kombat Pack" DLC.[257]
We cannot WAIT to show you season two. It's crazier, stranger, more intense, more emotional. In fact, it's too much — so the Surgeon General has insisted we air the first three episodes on September 4, then air the remaining five episodes weekly after that. We wanted to give you time to freak out, digest, discuss, come down from the high, before we give you another dose. We only have your well-being in mind. Hope you love the season as much as we do.
Kripke wanted to also avoid 'fridging', which sees women being killed off as motivation for male heroes.