122 Fun Facts About The Boys

Which actor plays Homelander in the live-action series?

Antony Starr plays Homelander, having also voiced him in the animated Diabolical and appeared in person in Gen V's first-season finale.

Which member of the Boys is the team's weapons and explosives expert?

Frenchie, played by Tomer Capone, builds the Boys' weapons and explosives; a former arms dealer and chemist, he was recruited by Grace Mallory for exactly those skills.

In which season of the show is Congresswoman Victoria Neuman introduced?

Victoria Neuman is introduced in the second season as the congresswoman investigating Vought; its finale reveals she is the head-popping assassin, and Hughie only learns it in season three when Tony calls her Nadia.

Vought secretly doses infants with which blue serum to create superheroes, as the Boys learn from A-Train's girlfriend Popclaw?

Compound V is the secret: Supes aren't born, they're made, as Vought has dosed babies for decades while selling the public a story about gifts from God.

Before the Boys learn her real name, Kimiko Miyashiro is referred to only as what?

She is called The Female, a name kept from the comics where the character is never named; the show made her Kimiko Miyashiro, a former Shining Light Liberation Army soldier played by Karen Fukuhara.

Which Vought executive, his pseudo-mother figure, does Homelander murder?

Madelyn Stillwell was Vought's Senior Vice President of Hero Management and Homelander's surrogate mother figure; he lasers her through the eyes in the season-one finale, leaving him without a moderating influence.

Which member of the Seven becomes Hughie's girlfriend?

Starlight, the Seven's newest recruit, meets Hughie by chance on a park bench in season one, neither knowing who the other is; they become the show's central couple.

What is the real name of the superhero known as Starlight?

Annie January is Starlight's real name; she debuted in the comics in 2006 and grew up as a Vought-managed child hero before being picked to join the Seven.

In the TV series, which pair hosts the annual Herogasm party at their house?

The TNT Twins, Tommy and Tessa, host Herogasm at their mansion in season three; the 2009 comic miniseries Herogasm set the event on a secluded Vought-run island instead.

Under what hero name did Stormfront operate in the 1970s?

As Liberty, Stormfront operated in the 1970s until a racially motivated 1972 murder forced Vought to retire the identity; born Klara Risinger in Germany in 1919, she resurfaced decades later, unaged, as Stormfront.

Which weapon is most commonly associated with Billy Butcher?

A crowbar is Butcher's signature weapon: he swings one at Stormfront in the season-two finale, and in the comics Butcher beats Black Noir to death with a crowbar.

Which member of The Seven, desperate to stay the world's fastest man, develops an addiction to Compound V?

A-Train, played by Jessie T. Usher, shoots up Compound V to protect his title as the world's fastest man, and it wrecks his heart.

What was Soldier Boy's original superhero team before his disappearance?

Soldier Boy was the leader of Payback, Vought's premier superhero team before The Seven.

Who is biologically the father of Homelander?

The show's Homelander is Soldier Boy's son and, through Becca Butcher, father of the first naturally born Supe.

Which member of The Seven was thought invulnerable due to their skin, but had a weakness?

Translucent's skin turns into a light-bending carbon metamaterial that makes him invulnerable from outside, so the Boys plant C-4 inside him; Hughie detonates it in season one.

In Season 2, Homelander outs Queen Maeve's relationship with which woman on live television?

Maeve had ended the relationship years earlier over fears of Vought's reaction; after losing her powers in Season 3 she goes into hiding with Elena.

Which actor plays Lamplighter in Season 2?

He immolates himself during a rescue attempt at Vought's headquarters after Hughie convinces him to help.

Which government body does Victoria Neuman run when Hughie works for her in Season 3?

Neuman heads the Federal Bureau of Superhuman Affairs, the FBSA, where Hughie works for her at the start of season three while she secretly keeps killing people with her head-popping power.

Where does Hughie Campbell work when the series begins?

Hughie works at Bryman's Audio Electronics, a small New York electronics store, when the pilot opens; Butcher first approaches him there, posing as a federal agent.

Homelander's son with Becca Butcher, the first naturally born Supe, has what first name?

Ryan, played by Cameron Crovetti, is Homelander's son with Becca Butcher and the first Supe born with powers rather than dosed with Compound V; Homelander reveals him to Butcher in the season-one finale.

Which supe does Homelander install as CEO of Vought International in Season 4?

Homelander makes Sister Sage CEO of Vought International in season four, sidelining the previous boss as a figurehead; Sage is played by Susan Heyward.

What is Queen Maeve's signature weapon, often seen with her?

A sword is Queen Maeve's signature weapon: the Seven's Wonder Woman analogue, played by Dominique McElligott, carries the blade as part of her armored costume in both the comics and the show.

How does Becca Butcher die in the Season 2 finale?

Becca dies accidentally at her son's hands: Ryan's untrained laser eyes, fired at Stormfront to protect his mother, cut through Becca too, and she bleeds out asking Butcher to keep Ryan safe.

What is the name of Hughie's girlfriend, killed in the first episode by a speedster who runs straight through her?

Robin's death is what pulls Hughie into Butcher's crusade against Vought; the same accident happens in the comics.

Which former teammate is the first Supe Soldier Boy kills after his return?

Crimson Countess, his former lover and teammate, is the first Supe Soldier Boy kills after escaping the Russians; in season three he blasts her to ash inside her trailer after she admits she never loved him.

Which building is Vought International's corporate headquarters?

Vought's headquarters is the Manhattan skyscraper called the Seven Tower, home to both the corporation and the Seven; on screen it is a CGI tower composited onto real city locations to pass for New York.

What unique power does the supe Termite possess?

In Season 3 he accidentally kills his boyfriend by returning to full size at the wrong moment; Butcher then drops the tiny Supe into a bag of cocaine.

Which character serves as the Vought publicist who later becomes CEO?

Colby Minifie's Ashley pulls out her hair under stress and, by Season 4, is reduced to a 'mascot' when a new Seven member takes over the company.

Whose powers does Soldier Boy's blast strip away in the Russian lab in Season 3?

Kimiko loses her powers when Soldier Boy's chest blast hits her in the Russian lab in season three, overriding her regeneration; Frenchie later re-doses her with Compound V to restore them.

'Herogasm' was adapted as which episode of Season 3?

Herogasm is the sixth episode of season three, first streamed on 24 June 2022; it adapts the 2009 comic miniseries that fans long assumed was unfilmable.

What is the name of Victoria Neuman's daughter?

Victoria Neuman's daughter is Zoe; Neuman secretly injects her with Compound V at the end of season three, and in season four Zoe fights Butcher's team with tentacles that burst from her mouth.

Which Marvel team is Vought's old flagship squad Payback a parody of?

Payback parodies the Avengers, with its leader standing in for Captain America and Crimson Countess for Scarlet Witch; the Seven replaced it as Vought's flagship team.

In the comics, how does Homelander kill Queen Maeve?

Decapitation: late in the comics' run Homelander tears Maeve's head off after she turns on him with her sword to buy Starlight time to flee; the TV series spares her, letting her retire powerless.

What is the full name of the actress who plays Starlight?

Moriarty also plays a shapeshifting Supe impersonating Starlight in the fourth season.

What does Vought call the serum variant that grants only temporary superpowers in Season 3?

V24, nicknamed Temp V, gives roughly 24 hours of powers per dose; Butcher and Hughie inject it to fight Supes in season three while Vought pitches it to the Pentagon as a battlefield drug.

Who is the adoptive father of Victoria Neuman?

Stan Edgar, Vought's CEO, took Nadia Khayat out of a company-run home for superpowered children and raised her as his daughter under the name Victoria Neuman.

In the TV series, which Vought scientist raised Homelander in a laboratory?

Vogelbaum later calls Homelander his 'greatest failure'; Homelander maims him after learning the truth about his son.

In which city did Starlight grow up?

Starlight grew up in Des Moines, Iowa, pushed into child pageants and hero work by her mother Donna; she moves to New York when Vought picks her for the Seven.

In the TV series, how did M.M.'s grandfather die?

A Supe-caused car crash: Soldier Boy hurled a car into the family's house, killing M.M.'s grandfather; M.M.'s father then spent the rest of his life trying and failing to sue Vought over it.

Who was Frederick Vought's wife and the first person his Compound V worked on?

Stormfront, born Klara Risinger, was Frederick Vought's wife and the first successful Compound V subject; her Nazi past is exposed in the season-two finale, ending her run in the Seven.

In the comics, what was young Homelander kept chained to as Vought's failsafe?

Comics Homelander was raised in a Vought bunker chained to a nuclear bomb, the company's failsafe should the child's powers run out of control; the TV series instead raises him in a sterile Vought laboratory.

Victoria Neuman becomes running mate to which presidential candidate?

She got the slot by betraying Stan Edgar to help Homelander take over Vought.

What is the name of the orphanage where Victoria Neuman was adopted from?

Nadia Khayat grew up at Red River, a Vought-run orphanage for children with superhuman abilities, before being secretly adopted by the company's CEO.

In Season 4, which member of the Boys frees the imprisoned former Vought CEO?

Mother's Milk, now leading the Boys, gets Stan Edgar out of prison in season four to use as leverage against Neuman; Edgar had been jailed after his fall from Vought in season three.

Which former Payback member does Butcher kill while on Temp V in Season 3?

Gunpowder, the gun-toting former Payback member, is killed by Butcher in season three after Butcher's first dose of Temp V gives him heat vision; Gunpowder had shot him earlier that night.

In the TV series, who is Colonel Grace Mallory to Billy Butcher?

In the comics the character is Lieutenant Colonel Greg Mallory, the original team leader; the show made her a woman played by Laila Robins.

Which Season 4 addition to the Seven is a far-right conspiracy podcaster?

Firecracker, played by Valorie Curry, joins the Seven in season four as a far-right podcaster hand-picked by Sister Sage; her power is throwing off sparks, and she carries a grudge against Starlight from their pageant days.

Vought secretly assigned the 'retired' Lamplighter to which covert Supe-drug testing facility?

Vought stationed Lamplighter at Sage Grove hospital, a psychiatric facility used to test Compound V on inmates; he burned the failed subjects, and the Boys infiltrate it in season two.

What is the primary power of Mesmer, the former child star supe?

Played by Haley Joel Osment, Mesmer needs skin contact to read minds and fell from grace after allegedly using it for insider trading.

On which streaming service did The Boys premiere in 2019?

Prime Video released season one in 2019; Amazon ordered the show to series in November 2017, and Sony Pictures Television co-produces it with Amazon Studios.

Which two creators made the original comic book The Boys is based on?

Garth Ennis wrote and Darick Robertson drew The Boys, launched in 2006; Robertson had earlier co-created Transmetropolitan with Warren Ellis, and Ennis is best known for his long Punisher run.

In the TV series, which two organisations did Billy Butcher serve before the show begins?

The SAS and the CIA: the TV Butcher served in Britain's Special Air Service before the CIA recruited him to run its Supe-hunting unit; in the comics he was a Royal Marine instead.

Which director was attached to Columbia's planned film version of The Boys in 2008?

Adam McKay, then known for Anchorman and Step Brothers, signed on to direct a Boys film for Columbia Pictures in 2008; the studio dropped the project in 2010.

Which comedy duo are executive producers on The Boys?

They were also working on Preacher, another Ennis adaptation, at the time.

In which city was The Boys primarily filmed?

Toronto landmarks were digitally altered to look like New York.

On what date did the first season of The Boys premiere?

The Boys premiered on July 26, 2019, with the whole first season released the same day; season two followed in September 2020.

Which 1950s-set prequel spin-off of The Boys was announced in 2024?

Vought Rising, announced at San Diego Comic-Con in July 2024, is a 1950s-set prequel bringing back Soldier Boy and Stormfront to explore Vought's early days.

What is the name of Vought's in-universe cable news channel?

Vought News Network, VNN, is the company's in-house cable news channel modeled on Fox News; it spins the Seven's scandals and, in season four, becomes Homelander's propaganda arm.

In Season 4, whom do the Boys work with the CIA to assassinate?

Victoria Neuman: in season four Butcher's team, with CIA veteran Grace Mallory, plots to kill the vice-president-elect before her inauguration, since Homelander and Sister Sage are using her to seize the White House.

Sister Sage is described as what?

The smartest person in the world is Sister Sage's power, played by Susan Heyward: intellect, the one thing Homelander lacks.

What weapon does Sameer Shah develop in Season 4 that threatens every Supe?

A virus that can kill all Supes: scientist Sameer Shah, Neuman's former partner, engineers a pathogen lethal to anyone with Compound V, and Butcher keeps a dose as his last card against Homelander.

What is Queen Maeve's real name?

Queen Maeve's real name is Maggie Shaw; Dominique McElligott played her for three seasons before the character retired powerless after the season-three finale.

What is A-Train's real name?

A-Train's real name is Reggie Franklin; his brother Nathan Franklin, a former coach paralyzed by Blue Hawk in season three, is the family conscience A-Train keeps failing.

Which religious group does The Deep join after his Season 1 disgrace?

The Deep joins the Church of the Collective, a Scientology-style group led by Alastair Adana, after being exiled to Sandusky, Ohio; it arranges his marriage to Cassandra and his bid to rejoin the Seven.

Which actor plays both Earving and his masked replacement Justin in The Seven?

The original Noir, Earving, dies in the Season 3 finale.

Which actress plays Vought executive Madelyn Stillwell?

Shue was a Season 1 regular and later guest starred.

Which actress plays Stormfront?

Aya Cash plays Stormfront, gender-swapped from the comics' male Nazi supervillain; the You're the Worst actress joined in season two as the Seven's social-media-savvy new recruit.

Which Walking Dead star plays Joe Kessler in Season 4?

Jeffrey Dean Morgan, Negan on The Walking Dead, plays Joe Kessler in season four; Kessler turns out to be a hallucination, a projection of Butcher's most ruthless impulses.

Which Hamilton star was cast in Season 5 of The Boys in September 2024?

Daveed Diggs, the original Lafayette and Thomas Jefferson in Hamilton, was announced in September 2024 as a new cast member for the fifth and final season of The Boys.

Who directed the first episode after Rogen and Goldberg dropped out?

Trachtenberg later directed Prey (2022).

From Season 2 onward, how were episodes released?

Weekly, after Kripke convinced Amazon that dropping everything at once made the show a topic for a weekend instead of a season.

Which sitcom made Darick Robertson draw Hughie to resemble Simon Pegg?

Spaced, the 1999 Channel 4 sitcom, made Darick Robertson a Simon Pegg fan, so he drew Hughie in Pegg's likeness; Pegg felt too old for the TV Hughie and plays his father instead.

Why did Kripke gender-swap Stormfront for the show?

Kripke called her 'Homelander's worst nightmare'.

Which comedian voices The Deep's gills?

Patton Oswalt voices the Deep's gills in season two, when a psychedelic mushroom trip has them talk the hero through his body-image insecurities.

What is slowly killing Billy Butcher in Season 4?

Temp V left Butcher with a brain tumor; at the start of season four doctors give him months to live, and the tumor sparks the hallucinations that haunt him all season.

Which Walking Dead actress plays Crimson Countess?

Holden also sings 'Chimps Don't Cry' on the Season 3 soundtrack.

Which Supernatural actor did Kripke cast for The Boys' final season?

Jared Padalecki, Sam Winchester on Kripke's Supernatural, was announced for the fifth and final season at Comic-Con in July 2024, joining former co-star Jensen Ackles in the universe.

Which actress plays Hughie's mother, Daphne Campbell?

Rosemarie DeWitt plays Daphne Campbell, the mother who abandoned Hughie as a child and returns in season four while his father lies dying; Simon Pegg plays the father.

Which theme park's Medieval Faire was a Season 3 filming location?

Canada's Wonderland, a Canadian amusement park, stood in for Vought's theme park during season three's February-to-September 2021 shoot.

Who composes the score for The Boys, having worked with Kripke on Supernatural?

Christopher Lennertz scores The Boys, reuniting with Kripke after composing for Supernatural; Matt Bowen joined him as co-composer from season three.

Which Emmy-nominated song did Erin Moriarty sing herself for Season 2?

Never Truly Vanish, the memorial ballad in the season-two premiere, was sung by Erin Moriarty herself and earned a 2021 Emmy nomination for Outstanding Original Music and Lyrics.

Which two slogans were parodied in Season 4 promotional materials?

Make America Great Again and Black Lives Matter were parodied as Homelander's 'Make America Super Again' and the 'Supe Lives Matter' slogan in season four's in-universe politics and promotional art.

Showrunner Eric Kripke has said Homelander is a metaphor for which US president?

Donald Trump is the model, Kripke says, and viewers who find the show too 'woke' should 'go watch something else'.

At which festival did the pilot 'The Name of the Game' premiere in April 2019?

The Boys premiered at the Tribeca Film Festival in New York on 29 April 2019, three months before its streaming release, with a cast Q&A after the screening.

Why was the Season 4 finale retitled from 'Assassination Run' to 'Season Four Finale'?

A viewer discretion warning was also added.

Which companion piece starring Karl Urban bridged the first and second seasons?

Butcher: A Short Film, a ten-minute piece with Karl Urban, dropped online on 10 September 2020 to show what Butcher did between the season-one finale and season two.

Which social worker does Frenchie fall for in Season 4?

Colin Hauser, played by Elliot Knight, is the social worker Frenchie falls for in season four; Frenchie is tormented because, years earlier as a mob hitman, he murdered Colin's family.

What is the title of Vought's in-universe blockbuster about the Seven, directed by Adam Bourke?

Dawn of the Seven is Vought's in-universe blockbuster about the team, directed by the hapless Adam Bourke; it is reshot repeatedly in season two, and its red-carpet premiere opens season three.

Which member of the Seven kills Black Noir in the Season 3 finale?

Homelander kills Black Noir in the season-three finale, gutting him with a punch after learning Noir had hidden a secret about Homelander's parentage from him for decades.

Which Russian mob boss did Frenchie once work for as a hitman?

Little Nina is the Russian mob boss Frenchie once worked for as a hitman; in season three the Boys trade favors with her to locate the Russian lab holding Soldier Boy.

In 2021 The Boys became the first comic-book adaptation nominated for which Emmy?

Outstanding Drama Series: The Boys' second season earned the 2021 nomination, the first time a comic-book adaptation made the Emmys' top drama category; it lost to The Crown.

What is the name of the octopus The Deep is forced to eat in Season 3?

Timothy is the octopus Homelander forces The Deep to eat alive at a dinner in season three; The Deep, who can talk to sea life, sobs as Timothy begs for his life.

Which comic team from 'We Gotta Go Now' inspired the spin-off Gen V?

The G-Men were a parody of Marvel's X-Men.

Which two actors were announced as producers of The Boys: Mexico?

Diego Luna and Gael García Bernal were announced in 2023 as executive producers of The Boys: Mexico, a Spanish-language spin-off created by Gareth Dunnet-Alcocer.

Which character hosts Vought's in-universe news show Seven on 7?

Seven on 7 with Cameron Coleman is Vought's monthly in-universe news show, released online between seasons two and three; Coleman also anchors Vought's news channel inside the series until Homelander kills him in season four.

Which Blondie song does Soldier Boy perform in a viral fake Solid Gold appearance?

Rapture: a season-three promo restaged Blondie's 1981 hit as a Soldier Boy performance on the 1980s show Solid Gold, with Jensen Ackles rapping the song's verses in full costume.

Which three characters joined Call of Duty in the first 2023 crossover?

Black Noir, Homelander and Starlight arrived in Call of Duty: Modern Warfare II and Warzone as operator bundles in June 2023, the first Boys crossover with the shooter; A-Train followed in 2024.

In which fighting game did Homelander appear as a DLC fighter in 2024?

Mortal Kombat 1 added Homelander as a Kombat Pack DLC fighter in June 2024, after his inclusion was announced at Comic-Con in July 2023 alongside Omni-Man and Peacemaker as guest fighters.

Which publisher cancelled The Boys comic after six issues before Dynamite picked it up?

DC, WildStorm's parent, was uneasy with the anti-superhero tone.

How many issues did The Boys comic run before ending in November 2012?

The Boys ran 72 issues from October 2006 to November 2012, alongside spin-off miniseries such as Herogasm and Highland Laddie.

What is the title of the 2020 eight-issue epilogue comic?

Dear Becky, an eight-issue Dynamite miniseries by Ennis and artist Russ Braun, ran from June to December 2020 and catches up with Hughie and Annie years after the main series ended.

In the comics, who is revealed to be a clone of Homelander built to kill him?

Noir committed the atrocities, including Becca's rape, to force a showdown.

What nationality is Hughie in the original comics?

The comics' Hughie is Scottish, from the fictional village of Auchterladie; the TV series made him an American from New York, with the Scottish angle surviving only in the Highland Laddie miniseries.

In the comics, in which London area did Butcher grow up?

The East End: the comics' Butcher grew up there in a violent household, watching his father beat his mother, before joining the Royal Marines.

In which war did comic-book Butcher fight as a Royal Marine?

The Falklands War: the comics' Butcher served there as a Royal Marine in 1982 and found he had a taste for killing, a streak Mallory later exploited when recruiting him.

What is the name of Butcher's bulldog in the comics?

Terror is Butcher's English bulldog in both the comics and the TV series; his party trick, on Butcher's command, is humping whatever he is pointed at.

Who voices Butcher in the animated Diabolical?

Jason Isaacs voices Butcher in Diabolical's Garth Ennis-written episode, with Simon Pegg voicing Hughie; the pair are drawn in Darick Robertson's comic-book style.

Which university is the setting of Gen V?

Godolkin University School of Crimefighting was founded by Thomas Godolkin; Gen V follows its students testing their moral limits.

Which actress plays Gen V protagonist Marie Moreau?

Jaz Sinclair plays Marie Moreau, the Gen V freshman who can manipulate her own blood as a weapon; Sinclair had earlier starred in Chilling Adventures of Sabrina.

Which Gen V character shifts between male and female forms?

Jordan Li switches between male and female bodies, each with different powers; London Thor and Derek Luh share the role, with the female form firing energy blasts and the male form built for durability.

Which son of Arnold Schwarzenegger played Golden Boy in Gen V?

Patrick Schwarzenegger plays Golden Boy, Luke Riordan, the school's top-ranked student who can engulf himself in flames; he dies by suicide in the Gen V premiere after discovering a Vought secret beneath the campus.

What is the secret underground research facility in Gen V called?

The Woods is the secret lab beneath the campus where Vought experiments on imprisoned Supes; Dean Indira Shetty secretly ran it with Vought's backing until the students exposed it.

Which Gen V character is Marie's roommate, a Supe who shrinks by purging?

Emma Meyer, played by Lizze Broadway, is Marie's roommate who shrinks by purging and grows by binge-eating, a body-image metaphor; she performs online as Little Cricket.

Which Diabolical episode is set in the same continuity as the comics?

I'm Your Pusher, the third episode, was written by Garth Ennis and drawn in Darick Robertson's comic style, and is the one short set in the comics' world rather than the show's.

In which year did the animated anthology The Boys Presents: Diabolical premiere?

The Boys Presents: Diabolical premiered on 4 March 2022, a set of animated shorts in different styles released together three months before season three.

Which Cinemax series starred Antony Starr as Lucas Hood before The Boys?

Banshee ran on Cinemax from 2013 to 2016 with Antony Starr as Lucas Hood, an ex-con posing as a small-town sheriff; Starr had earlier played twins on New Zealand's Outrageous Fortune.

In which New Zealand city was Karl Urban born?

Karl Urban was born in Wellington, New Zealand, in 1972; the Butcher actor plays a Londoner, and he co-starred with fellow New Zealander Antony Starr on the show.

Which Star Trek reboot character did Karl Urban play?

Dr. Leonard McCoy, 'Bones', was Urban's; he was also Éomer in The Lord of the Rings and Judge Dredd.

Hughie actor Jack Quaid's parents are Dennis Quaid and which actress?

Meg Ryan and Dennis Quaid, married from 1991 to 2001, are Jack Quaid's parents; he made his film debut as the tribute Marvel in The Hunger Games in 2012.

Which physicist did Jack Quaid play in Oppenheimer?

Richard Feynman: Jack Quaid played the bongo-playing young physicist in Christopher Nolan's Oppenheimer (2023); he also voices Brad Boimler in Star Trek: Lower Decks.

Where was Garth Ennis born?

Garth Ennis was born in Holywood, County Down, Northern Ireland, in 1970; he is also known for Hitman and a Punisher run spanning most of the 2000s.

Which cable channel passed on The Boys before Amazon took the TV rights in November 2017?

Cinemax developed The Boys in 2016 but let it go; Amazon picked it up and ordered it straight to series in November 2017, with Sony Pictures Television co-producing.