The Boys (TV series)

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 name by Garth Ennis and Darick Robertson, it follows the eponymous team of vigilantes as they combat superpowered individuals (referred to 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.

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, which is expected to premiere in 2026. As part of a shared universe, a spin-off web series (Seven on 7) premiered on July 7, 2021, an adult animated anthology series (Diabolical) premiered on March 4, 2022, and a 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 Series in 2021, and has won six Astra TV Awards and seven Critics' Choice Super Awards.

Premise
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, self-serving and recklessly cause collateral damage. The series primarily focuses on two groups: The Boys, CIA-sponsored black ops agents looking to bring down Vought and its corrupt superheroes, and The Seven, Vought's premier superhero team who are The Boys' most powerful adversaries.

Cast and characters

 * Karl Urban as William "Billy" Butcher – The leader of The Boys. A former SAS operative who distrusts all superpowered individuals, he has a particular hatred towards Homelander, who he believes is responsible for the disappearance of his wife, Becca; Luca Villacis and Josh Zaharia portray younger versions of Butcher in the third season.
 * Jack Quaid as Hugh "Hughie" Campbell Jr. – A member of The Boys and a civilian tech specialist who joins the team after his girlfriend, Robin, is run over and killed by A-Train while the latter is high on Compound V.
 * Antony Starr as John Gillman / Homelander – The extremely powerful leader of The Seven; notable powers include flight, heat vision, and superhuman strength. Beneath his public image as a noble hero, he is egotistical and megalomaniacal, and he cares little about the well-being of those he professes to protect; Rowan Smyth and Isaac Weeks portray a young John in the second and fourth season, respectively.
 * Erin Moriarty as Annie January / Starlight – A superhero with energy manipulation, light-based powers and superhuman strength, and a member of The Seven. One of the few heroes who values protecting society, she questions her loyalty to The Seven after learning of their true character; Maya Misaljevic portrays a young Annie in the third season.
 * Moriarty also portrays a variation of the Shapeshifter Supe in the fourth season.
 * Dominique McElligott as Margaret Shaw / Queen Maeve (seasons 1–3) – A veteran member of The Seven with superhuman strength and reflexes, and durability. Once desiring to protect innocent lives, she has become disillusioned and suffers from burnout.
 * Jessie T. Usher as Reggie Franklin / A-Train – A speedster member of The Seven. He is determined to maintain his status as the fastest speedster in the world, which results in him becoming addicted to Compound V.
 * Laz Alonso as Marvin T. "Mother's" Milk / M.M. – A member of The Boys responsible for organizing and planning their operations. Formerly a medic in the United States Marine Corps, he joined The Boys after Soldier Boy caused his grandfather's death and his attorney father working himself to demise attempting to bring Vought down; Elias Leon Leacock portrays a young M.M. in the third season.
 * Chace Crawford as Kevin Moskowitz / The Deep – A member of The Seven who possesses aquatic telepathy and amphibious physiology. He is looked down upon by the other members of The Seven due to his status as the group's token aquatic hero; Patton Oswalt voices the Deep's gills.
 * Tomer Capone as Serge / Frenchie – A member of The Boys and an international arms trafficker skilled in chemistry, infiltration, munitions, and ordnance. Coerced into joining the group to protect his criminal friends and to assuage his own guilt, he seeks redemption for his past crimes by fighting against Vought.
 * Karen Fukuhara as Kimiko Miyashiro / The Female – A mute member of The Boys with super strength and regenerative healing. Involuntarily injected with Compound V as part of a scheme to create superpowered terrorists, she joins The Boys after they free her; Momona Tamada and Ai Barrett portray a young Kimiko in the first and fourth season, respectively.
 * Nathan Mitchell as Earving / Black Noir (seasons 1–3) and Black Noir II (season 4) – A mysterious member of The Seven who possesses combat prowess and enhanced stealth. Formerly a member of Payback, he was severely disfigured during his team's mutiny against Soldier Boy, rendering him mute and forcing him to conceal his physical appearance behind a dark costume. Before the final showdown with Soldier Boy, he is murdered by Homelander and is swiftly succeeded by an actor replacement, who is also a "Supe" able to fly, as a cover-up.  Fritzy-Klevans Destine portrays a young, unmasked Black Noir in the third season.
 * Elisabeth Shue as Madelyn Stillwell (season 1; guest season 2) – The charismatic, scheming vice president of Vought International who is responsible for managing The Seven.
 * Colby Minifie as Ashley Barrett (season 2–present; recurring season 1) – A publicist for Vought International who later becomes its CEO.
 * Aya Cash as Klara Risinger / Liberty / Stormfront (season 2; guest season 3) – The first successful Compound V subject and member of The Seven with plasma-based abilities. Once a member of the Nazi Party, she holds bigoted views towards minorities and the non-superpowered.
 * Claudia Doumit as Nadia Khayat / Victoria Neuman (seasons 3–4; recurring season 2) – A congresswoman who secretly works for Vought as a superpowered assassin with head-popping powers and the ability to control the blood of anyone; Elisa Paszt portrays a young Nadia in the third season.
 * Jensen Ackles as Ben / Soldier Boy (season 3; guest season 4) – Vought's original premier superhero and the leader of Payback who possesses superhuman strength and is able to generate radiation. Thought to have been killed during the Cold War, he was secretly betrayed by his team and captured by the Soviets in order for Vought to replace him with Homelander, his biological son.
 * Cameron Crovetti as Ryan (season 4; recurring season 2–3) – Homelander and Becca's son, known as the first natural-born "Supe", who forms a close bond with Billy Butcher; Parker Corno portrayed Ryan in the first season finale.
 * Susan Heyward as Jessica "Sage" Bradley / Sister Sage (season 4) – A misanthropic "Supe" with greatly enhanced intelligence, proclaimed as the smartest person on the planet, who is recruited by Homelander and replaces Ashley as CEO of Vought International.
 * Valorie Curry as Misty Tucker Gray / Firecracker (season 4) – An alt-right "Supe" influencer with a personal vendetta against Starlight, and a competent public agitator and conspiracy theorist.
 * Jeffrey Dean Morgan as Joe Kessler (season 4) – A deceased CIA case officer who appears as a hallucination to Butcher that is caused by the Temp V-enhanced tumor throbbing inside Butcher's brain.

Season 1
After his girlfriend is accidentally murdered by one of The Seven, led by the egotistical and unstable Homelander, Hughie Campbell is enlisted by Billy Butcher, who despises all superpowered beings, and joins the vigilante team known as The Boys. As a conflict ensues between the two teams, Annie January / Starlight, a young and hopeful heroine, is forced to face the truth about the heroes she admires, after she joins The Seven. Amid The Boys' attempt to cease Vought International from receiving government support for Supes by uncovering the company's secrets, Hughie and Annie begin a romantic relationship, though the conflict is muddled despite the two of them initially being unaware of each other's affiliations.

Season 2
On the run from the law, hunted by the Supes, and desperately trying to regroup and fight back against Vought, The Boys try to adjust to a new normal in hiding, with Butcher nowhere to be found. Meanwhile, Starlight, now aiding the eponymous Boys, must navigate her place in The Seven as Homelander sets his sights on taking complete control. His power is threatened with the addition of Stormfront, a social media-savvy new Supe, who has an agenda of her own and a secret past with the hopes of convincing an unwitting Homelander to lead Supes to world domination. The conflict is worsened when Butcher learns that his wife, Becca, is still alive and being held captive by Vought with a superpowered son, Ryan, fathered by Homelander. On top of that, the Supervillain threat takes center stage and makes waves as Vought seeks to capitalize on the nation's paranoia.

Season 3
One year after the Stormfront scandal, The Boys now work for Victoria Neuman's Bureau of Superhero Affairs to apprehend problematic Supes, having been at peace with The Seven; Butcher and Homelander itch to turn this peace and quiet into blood and bone. When The Boys learn of a mysterious anti-Supe weapon, it sends them crashing into The Seven, starting a war and chasing the legend of the first superhero: Soldier Boy. Meanwhile, Homelander's mental stability begins to deteriorate as Vought attempts to restrict his power.

Season 4
Six months after the defeat of Soldier Boy, the world is on the brink. Victoria Neuman is closer than ever to the Oval Office and under the muscly thumb of Homelander, who is consolidating his power. Butcher, with only months to live, has lost Ryan and his position as leader of The Boys; the rest of the team are fed up with his lies. With the stakes higher than ever, they have to find a way to work together and save the world before it's too late.

Development
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, 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. Seth Rogen and Evan Goldberg, 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. Eric Kripke, a longtime fan of Ennis's work, was hired as the series showrunner and head writer.

In November 2017, Amazon Studios acquired the rights to the television adaptation after Cinemax chose not to move forward with it. 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. That same day, Amazon greenlit the production of the first season of eight episodes, each with an estimated budget of $11.2 million. Production was expected to begin in spring of 2018 for a planned release in 2019. Amazon also committed to a run of at least five seasons, in line with Kripke's plans, hoping to replicate the success of hit genre dramas like Game of Thrones (2011–2019), Stranger Things (2016–present), and The Walking Dead (2010–2022).

A second season was announced in July 2019 at the San Diego Comic-Con a week before the series premiere, with Kripke having already started to write the scripts. In December 2019, a teaser trailer confirmed that the second season would be released in 2020, and another trailer released in June 2020 confirmed that it would premiere that September. 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.

A third season was announced at the after-show for San Diego Comic-Con@Home in 2020. Kripke revealed in October 2020 that he was writing the scripts for the third season, shortly after Amazon had announced the spin-off series Gen V (2023–present), which served as a bridge between the third and fourth seasons of The Boys, with the latter being announced in June 2022  and planned for release in 2024.

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. On June 11, 2024, Kripke announced that the fifth season would serve as the final season.

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.

In July 2024, setting up the series' final season, Kripke commented on the then-upcoming season four finale's impact, stating: "There's a sort of seismic change at the end of season four; nothing in the world is going to be the same." Following the finale's release, Kripke confirmed that he's "been planning five years all along, because there's no way a show goes one more season after the events of that finale".

Writing
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. 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. 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.

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. 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.

Kripke 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 series for the third season finale. 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.

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."

Casting
In December 2017, it was announced that Erin Moriarty had been cast in the lead role of Annie January / Starlight. In January 2018, it was reported that Antony Starr, Dominique McElligott, Chace Crawford, Jessie T. 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. In April 2018, it was reported that Karl Urban had been cast in the series' lead role of Billy Butcher. In May 2018, it was announced that Elisabeth Shue had been cast in the series regular role of Madelyn Stillwell. In June 2018, it was reported that Tomer Kapon had joined the main cast in the role of Frenchie. In August 2018, it was announced that Jennifer Esposito had been cast in the recurring role of CIA Agent Susan Raynor. 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. According to Robertson, Hughie was drawn in the comics to resemble Pegg after he saw Pegg in the sitcom Spaced (1999–2001), but Pegg thought he was too old to play the role of Hughie in the television series.

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. The reason why Stormfront was changed was in order to make the character of Homelander feel even more hurt from having his spotlight stolen. In September 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, later revealed to be the voice of the Deep's gills.

In August 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. 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. In October 2020, Doumit and Colby Minifie were promoted to series regulars for the third season.

In March 2021, Katia Winter joined the cast in the recurring role of Little Nina for the third and fourth season. 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. Two days later, Laurie Holden joined the cast as Crimson Countess in a recurring role for the third season. 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.

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. 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 Firecracker and Sister Sage, respectively. Later that month, Jeffrey Dean Morgan was cast in an undisclosed role, later to be revealed as Joe Kessler. In December 2022, Rob Benedict and Elliot Knight joined the cast in undisclosed capacities for the fourth season, alongside Rosemarie DeWitt, who was revealed to play Hughie's mom.

In April 2023, it was reported that Dan Mousseau would portray Webweaver, a parody of Spider-Man, in the fourth season. A first-look image of the character was shared during the V52 Expo, a fictional convention put on by Vought that parodies Disney's D23 Expo.

In June 2024, after much speculation and discussion online, Jared Padalecki confirmed that he will appear in the fifth and final season.

Filming


Although situated in New York City like in the comics, it was confirmed the series would be filmed in Toronto, Canada. 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.

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. Filming for the first season wrapped on October 11, 2018.

The filming for the second season started on July 17, 2019, 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. 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. Filming for the second season wrapped on November 15, 2019.

The filming for the third season started on February 24, 2021. 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. The new filming locations included for the season were Metro Toronto Convention Centre, the Saint George Manor, and Canada's Wonderland Medieval Faire. Filming for the third season wrapped on September 10, 2021.

The filming for the fourth season started on August 22, 2022. Pegg concluded filming his scenes on January 18, 2023. Filming on the finale began on February 12, with Starr concluding filming his scenes on April 4. Filming for the fourth season wrapped on April 12, 2023.

The filming for the fifth and final season is expected to start in mid-November 2025. In an interview from season four's launch, Kripke hinted that production would take at least two years before the final product is complete.

Music
Score albums have been released for each season of the series by Madison Gate Records. Christopher Lennertz served as composer of the series' score. 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). 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. The music video for "Never Truly Vanish" was released on YouTube on June 4, 2021. 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. 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. On June 17, 2022, another video was released for a song performed by Holden: "Chimps Don't Cry". 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. On June 14, 2024, the music video for "Let's Put the Christ Back in Christmas" was released on YouTube. An official website for "Vought on Ice" was also created and is available to visit.

Politics
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. 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". The series contains political satire, and many consider the show to be a critique of conservatism and far-right politics. It has also made references to corporate corruption, homophobia, police brutality, and sexual harassment.

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. Promotional materials for the fourth season included the quotes "Make America Super Again" and "Supe Lives Matter", a parody of the slogans "Make America Great Again" and "Black Lives Matter", respectively. Some of the producers have said that these analogies are intentional and made to cast a political message.

While promoting the fourth season 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". He also said that viewers who think the series is too "woke" should "go watch something else" and expressed surprise to some viewers perceiving Homelander as the series' hero, saying: "What do you say to that? The show's many things. Subtle isn't one of them." In July 2024, concerned about the series' increasing similarity to real-world politics, particularly in season four, Kripke stated: "This show has an increasingly disturbing track record of reflecting reality one way or another. There's some throwaway dialogue, for example, in that billionaires are talking about how they have to stack the Supreme Court to get the decisions that they need. I'm not happy being Satan's writers room. I'm starting to get really troubled by it. But there does continue to be a certain eerie similarity between the show and the things that are happening in the real world." Furthermore, Ennis addressed his thoughts about the right-wing fans and their reaction to the series' satire, claiming that this is a world where "both ends of the political spectrum can claim they are the Jedi and the other guys are the Sith" and that "we're through the looking glass". He also pointed out that the contrast from certain fans comes from the fact that "people are choosing what to believe" in regards to the series.

Release
The Boys was planned to have all eight episodes of the first season released on Amazon Prime Video on July 26, 2019, but it instead premiered just a few hours earlier despite keeping the former date as the official one.

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, with the remaining episodes debuting on a weekly basis until the season finale on October 9. A companion short film (titled Butcher: A Short Film), set between the first and second seasons, was released on September 10, 2020, with Urban reprising his role as Butcher.

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. The fourth season premiered on June 13, 2024. Upon the release of the season four finale, the title of the episode was retitled from "Assassination Run" to "Season Four Finale", following the attempted assassination of Donald Trump five days prior; a "viewer discretion advised" warning was added at the beginning of the episode, with Amazon, Sony Pictures Television and the producers of The Boys opposing real-world political violence and clarifying that "any scene or plotline similarities to these real-world events are coincidental and unintentional". Following the release of the finale, Urban revealed that the fifth and final season won't arrive until 2026.

Characters from The Boys also appeared in an episode of Death Battle! (sponsored by Prime Video), which was released on YouTube, alongside a breakdown video, on September 17, 2020.

Home media
The first three seasons were all released on physical media. 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 2's bonus content also includes Butcher: A Short Film. Season 3 was released on October 24, 2023; special features include deleted/extended scenes and gag reels, as well as "The Making of Featurette".

Critical response
The Boys received critical acclaim, although the series' political aspects have been divisive and a major talking point, particularly for its fourth season. The series has an overall rating of 93% on Rotten Tomatoes and a score of 76 on Metacritic. Many critics and publications have called it among the best Amazon Prime Video series of all time. Starr's portrayal of Homelander has also received much critical acclaim, with numerous critics calling it one of the best performances on television.

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." On Metacritic, the season holds a weighted average score of 74 out of 100, based on 19 critic reviews, indicating "generally favorable" reviews.

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." On Metacritic, the season holds a weighted average score of 80 out of 100, based on 15 critic reviews, indicating "generally favorable" reviews.

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." On Metacritic, the season holds a weighted average score of 77 out of 100, based on 20 critic reviews, indicating "generally favorable" reviews.

On Rotten Tomatoes, the fourth season holds an approval rating of 93%, based on 128 reviews, with an average rating of 7.65/10. 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." On Metacritic, the season holds a weighted average score of 76 out of 100, based on 22 critic reviews, indicating "generally favorable" reviews. The season has received the most divisive and mixed reviews by critics.

Audience viewership
In October 2019, Nielsen announced it had begun tracking viewership of Amazon Prime Video original programs. It confirmed The Boys had attracted 8million total viewers in its first ten days of release, making it one of the most successful original programs on Prime Video. For the second season, the first three episodes drew a 7.2% share of streams relative to the top 100 most-watched TV series on Reelgood within its opening weekend, beating Stranger Things season 3 (5.8%) and The Mandalorian (4.4%). The series' audience increased 89% compared to the first season. Nielsen ratings showed that 891million minutes of the series had been watched, placing it number three on the Nielsen list, just behind Cobra Kai (2.17billion minutes) and Lucifer (1.42billion minutes). In addition, The Boys became the first non-Netflix series to appear on the Nielsen "Top 10 Streaming Shows" list. According to the Nielsen ratings, The Boys was the most-watched superhero series in 2022, becoming more popular than any Disney+ MCU series. Moreover, audiences watched 10.6billion minutes of the series, the 11th most-watched original streaming series of 2022. 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. Amid the launch of season four's first three episodes, The Boys scored 1.19billion viewing minutes during the week of June 10–16, 2024, according to Nielsen streaming data.

Awards and nominations
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. In 2022, PETA awarded the third season episode "Barbary Coast" the "Tech, Not Terror" Award for using a CGI octopus.

The Boys Presents: Diabolical
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. On January 18, 2022, it was announced that the series would premiere on March 4, 2022.

Gen V
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". On October 2, 2020, Kripke stated the series would focus on the G-Men team of "We Gotta Go Now", 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. On September 27, 2021, the untitled spin-off was given a series order by Amazon Studios. 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. The series premiered on September 29, 2023. On October 19, 2023, it was renewed for a second season.

The Boys: Mexico
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.

Vought News Network
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—a parody of the Cable News Network (CNN) as well as Fox News—YouTube channel, 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 two and three. Matthew Edison, who portrays news anchor Cameron Coleman—a parody of Tucker Carlson and J. K. Simmons' portrayal of film character J. Jonah Jameson from the MCU—also appears in the third and fourth seasons of the series.

Supe Porn
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), 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. In June 2022, a fictional online "storefront" was added to the website, containing a collection of supe-inspired sex toys. 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".

Deeper and Deeper
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.

Call of Duty
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. 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. 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.

Mortal Kombat
Homelander appeared as a playable character in the video game Mortal Kombat 1, modeled after Starr and voiced by Jake Green. He is available via the "Kombat Pack" DLC.