With The Boys returning for its penultimate season tomorrow, we recently caught up with series creator Eric Kripke to talk about a few pivotal moments and what's to come for our favorite heroes and villains over the next few weeks.
In our short, but informative conversation, Kripke walks us through the show's darkest season yet and how everything will ultimately set up arguably the biggest and baddest final season ever. He also breaks down this seaosn's wildest sequence, which does involve a Supernatural alum, and also elaborates on MM's (Laz Alonso) importance to the team and how he'll handle being the de facto leader this season.
The interview was conducted prior to Kripke announcing yesterday that the recently announced fifth season would be the show's last, so he does play it fairly coy when discussing his five-season plan.
Watch our full video interview with series creator Eric Kripke below and/or keep scrolling to read the transcription. Plus, please remember to subscribe to our YouTube channel for more exclusive content!
ROHAN: This is the show's darkest season yet, where pretty much every main character is forced to reconcile with their past. What went behind mapping out this season and setting the stage for what's sure-to-be an even more epic season five?
ERIC: For me, it was kind of just the natural flow of it, you really follow where your characters are going, in a weird way they tell you where they want to go. We've gotten to know them all so well, and as we're digging deeper into them every season, it felt like this was the time that they're all just kind of confronting their core trauma really, you know, what are the thing they're most scared of? Or, what is the thing that really made them who they are, and they have to really confront it, and then. in terms of the storyline, I mean, we were just heading this way ever since we introduced Victoria Neuman. That's really a storyline from the comic books, like she was always heading towards the White House, and she was always going to be one heartbeat away from the presidency and a Homelander-led coup of the United States. We've been building to that for years now, and so, you don't want to draw it out too long. You want to get there before the audience expects you to get there, and so, you just kind of take all those lessons and charge ahead.
ROHAN: MM is my favorite character on the show and he's really the heart of The Boys. He's leading the team this season and is really doing his best to keep everyone together. What is it like having a character like thati n your arsenal, who really is able to ground everyone and is able to be utilized in nearly every scenario?
ERIC: I mean, MM is a super helpful, great character, because, yes, he grounds everybody, but he's also almost always the smartest guy in the room, and so, to have a character who can just immediately put your clues together and tell you where you need to go next is super valuable. A character who everyone loves even, you know, Butcher or some of the rougher characters, and so, he can immediately bring out other people's humanity, which is super useful. So, you're exactly right, when you call him the heart of the team. I mean, another way to put it is he really is the group's mother, in that he loves them all, and he holds them all together, and sometimes at cost to his own personal needs, like a lot of mothers, and so, no, he's great, but he wouldn't be anything if Laz didn't play him so absolutely beautifully. I mean, Laz brings the gruffness and the heart and the intelligence to that role, and it's just such a pleasure to watch him work.
ROHAN: You've already brought Jensen Ackles and Jeffrey Dean Morgan into to the show, and are teasing a role for Jared Padalecki in season five, but I have to ask about another Supernatural guest star: Rob Benedict. He appears in arguably this season's wildest scene - how did that come together and what was that conversation like with him when you're bringing him onboard to play this character and perform that graphic scene?
ERIC: I mean, we had written that role, and we were casting and my casting director told me that Rob Benedict is interested in doing it, and I said, hold on, let me call him, you know, because he's a friend of mine, and he needs to know just what he's getting himself into. So, you know, just stating, I got Rob on the phone. I walked him through everything. I asked specifically for his consent. He said, absolutely, and I want to do it, and that sounds hilarious, and so, he knew what he was getting himself into. I'll just say that.
ROHAN: How long will we have to wait before the inevitable showdown between Billy and Homelander? Is the five-season plan still in place? (*This interview was conducted prior to yesterday's final season announcement*)
ERIC: Yeah, I'm recanting that and I genuinely don't know, and, I mean, look, no one has been more wrong in all of history at naming how long their shows should go, and so, I've learned to quit trying to speculate about how long my show should go and everyone will know in hindsight, but, for now, I'm keeping those cards close to my vest.
The Boys will premiere its fourth season on June 13, 2024, with three episodes, followed by a new episode each week, ending with the epic season finale on Thursday, July 18. The eight-episode season will stream exclusively on Prime Video in more than 240 countries and territories worldwide.
In Season Four, 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 Becca’s son and his job as The Boys’ leader. 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.
The Boys stars Karl Urban, Jack Quaid, Antony Starr, Erin Moriarty, Jessie T. Usher, Laz Alonso, Chace Crawford, Tomer Capone, Karen Fukuhara, Colby Minifie, Claudia Doumit, and Cameron Crovetti. Season Four will welcome Susan Heyward, Valorie Curry, and Jeffrey Dean Morgan.
The Boys is based on The New York Times best-selling comic by Garth Ennis and Darick Robertson, who also serve as executive producers, and developed by executive producer and showrunner Eric Kripke. Seth Rogen, Evan Goldberg, James Weaver, Neal H. Moritz, Pavun Shetty, Phil Sgriccia, Michaela Starr, Paul Grellong, David Reed, Meredith Glynn, Judalina Neira, Ken F. Levin, and Jason Netter also serve as executive producers. The Boys is produced by Sony Pictures Television, Amazon MGM Studios with Kripke Enterprises, Original Film, and Point Grey Pictures.
The Boys season four starts streaming on Prime Video on June 13!