# The Boys (TV series)
**The Boys** is an American satirical superhero television series developed by Eric Kripke for Amazon Prime Video, adapted from the comic book series of the same name by writer [Garth Ennis](https://www.edgepedia.org/garth-ennis) and artist Darick Robertson. It premiered in 2019 and ran for five seasons, ending with a series finale on May 20, 2026.[1](https://apnews.com/article/41841d15aec14c8c571e293577a37320) The show is set in a world where superheroes, managed by the conglomerate Vought International, are celebrities and corporate brands who abuse their powers, and it follows a group of vigilantes who try to expose them.[2](https://www.rottentomatoes.com/tv/the_boys_2019/s01)
| Key fact | Detail |
|---|---|
| Basis | Adaptation of the comic by Garth Ennis and Darick Robertson, which ran from 2006 to 2012[1](https://apnews.com/article/41841d15aec14c8c571e293577a37320) |
| Developer | Eric Kripke, creator of *Supernatural*, as showrunner, with Seth Rogen and Evan Goldberg among the executive producers[3](https://www.superherohype.com/tv/510223-seth-rogen-explains-why-the-boys-never-became-a-movie) |
| Run | Premiered 2019 on Prime Video; five seasons, with the finale on May 20, 2026[1](https://apnews.com/article/41841d15aec14c8c571e293577a37320) |
| Premise | Vigilantes take on celebrity superheroes who abuse their powers, managed by the multibillion-dollar conglomerate Vought[2](https://www.rottentomatoes.com/tv/the_boys_2019/s01) |
| Principal cast | Karl Urban (Billy Butcher), Jack Quaid (Hughie Campbell), Antony Starr (Homelander), Erin Moriarty (Starlight/Annie January)[4](https://www.aboutamazon.com/news/entertainment/the-boys-season-4-cast-guide-prime-video) |
| Reception | Season 1 scored 85% on the Rotten Tomatoes Tomatometer; season 5 scored 92% with a Metacritic Metascore of 75[5](https://www.rottentomatoes.com/tv/the_boys_2019) • [6](https://www.metacritic.com/tv/the-boys/critic-reviews/?season=season-5) |
| Franchise | Spinoffs include *Gen V*, *The Boys Presents: Diabolical*, *Vought Rising* (due 2027), and *The Boys: Mexico*[7](https://www.thewrap.com/the-boys-universe-shows-spinoffs-diabolical-gen-v-mexico-vought-rising/) |
## Spoilers
### Premise and setting
The series takes place in a fictional United States where superheroes, called "supes", are as popular as celebrities, as influential as politicians, and sometimes revered as gods, but use their powers for self-interest rather than good.[2](https://www.rottentomatoes.com/tv/the_boys_2019/s01) Vought International, an entertainment and pharmaceutical conglomerate, creates, brands, and markets its superpowered employees; commentators have read Vought as a stand-in for the Walt Disney Company, with the show beginning as a parody of the commercial machinery of the [Marvel Cinematic Universe](https://www.edgepedia.org/marvel-cinematic-universe).[8](https://foreignpolicy.com/2026/05/22/the-boys-tv-series-review-trump-homelander-superhero/) The New Yorker described the company as part Disney, part [Fox News](https://www.edgepedia.org/fox-news), and part Big Pharma, having first created superheroes as weapons and then turned them into celebrities.[9](https://www.newyorker.com/magazine/2024/07/08/the-boys-season-4-review)
The titular Boys are a vigilante group opposing Vought and its elite superhero team, the Seven. The group includes [Billy Butcher](https://www.edgepedia.org/billy-butcher) ([Karl Urban](https://www.edgepedia.org/karl-urban)), Hughie Campbell ([Jack Quaid](https://www.edgepedia.org/jack-quaid)), Frenchie, Mother's Milk, Kimiko, and Annie January, formerly the superhero Starlight (Erin Moriarty).[4](https://www.aboutamazon.com/news/entertainment/the-boys-season-4-cast-guide-prime-video) Homelander (Antony Starr), the leader of the Seven, is the series' central antagonist; the show traces his degeneration from celebrity to demagogue.[9](https://www.newyorker.com/magazine/2024/07/08/the-boys-season-4-review)
### Franchise
The show's success produced a shared universe on Prime Video. *The Boys Presents: Diabolical* is an animated anthology, and *Gen V* is a live-action spinoff set at Godolkin University, a superhero-only college run by Vought; unlike the main series, *Gen V*'s storyline and characters are not taken directly from the comic, though its plots are intertwined with *The Boys*.[7](https://www.thewrap.com/the-boys-universe-shows-spinoffs-diabolical-gen-v-mexico-vought-rising/) A spinoff set at the college had been fast-tracked during season 2 and was based in part on the G-Men, a parody of Marvel's X-Men from the comic.[27](https://www.thewrap.com/the-boys-spinoff-superhero-college-series-gmen-comics-xmen-parody-eric-kripke/) After the series ended, two further spinoffs were announced: *Vought Rising*, due in 2027, tracing the origins of Vought's "supe" program and bringing back [Jensen Ackles](https://www.edgepedia.org/jensen-ackles) as [Soldier Boy](https://www.edgepedia.org/soldier-boy), and *The Boys: Mexico*.[1](https://apnews.com/article/41841d15aec14c8c571e293577a37320)
## Development history
The comic, begun by Ennis and Robertson at [DC Comics](https://www.edgepedia.org/dc-comics) and moved to Dynamite Entertainment after it proved too controversial for DC, ran 72 issues from 2006 to 2012.[10](https://icv2.com/articles/comics/view/22136/columbia-whacks-the-boys) In February 2008, [Columbia Pictures](https://www.edgepedia.org/columbia-pictures) optioned the comic for a film adaptation; that project was eventually dropped, and producers became free to shop it elsewhere.[10](https://icv2.com/articles/comics/view/22136/columbia-whacks-the-boys) [Seth Rogen](https://www.edgepedia.org/seth-rogen) and Evan Goldberg pitched a live-action cinematic adaptation to Sony Pictures as early as the first issue's release in October 2006, and a planned movie trilogy was never made.[11](https://www.escapistmagazine.com/why-the-boys-movie-trilogy-was-canceled-explained/) An adaptation was also set up as a television project at Cinemax with Rogen and Goldberg producing and Kripke writing.[12](https://www.thewrap.com/seth-rogen-evan-goldberg-to-develop-the-boys-adaptation-for-cinemax/) By 2016 the project had been reworked as a television series, with Rogen and Goldberg working alongside showrunner Eric Kripke.[3](https://www.superherohype.com/tv/510223-seth-rogen-explains-why-the-boys-never-became-a-movie)
Kripke, who has said Ennis is his favorite comic book author, stated from the beginning that a one-to-one adaptation of the comic was impossible and that the story would have to change.[13](https://www.shacknews.com/article/113024/interview-eric-kripke-talks-adapting-the-boys-for-tv) • [14](https://www.cgmagonline.com/interviews/the-boys-season-4-eric-kripke/?_rt=NHwxfHRoZSBib3lzfDE3MjU2NDg5MTk&_rt_nonce=c5c1a47522) His 2015 pitch to Amazon described the show as "Deadpool meets Inglorious Basterds meets The Raid".[15](https://www.gamesradar.com/entertainment/superhero-shows/the-boys-creator-reveals-his-original-nsfw-pitch-for-the-show-and-the-mash-up-we-never-got-to-see-deadpool-meets-inglorious-basterds-meets-the-raid/) Amazon renewed the show for a second season before the first had debuted, and in June 2024 Kripke announced that season 5 would be the final season.[16](https://www.tomsguide.com/entertainment/prime-video/prime-videos-top-10-has-3-shows-worth-binge-watching-this-week-including-the-boys-season-5-finale-may-20-26) • [17](https://apnews.com/article/c23698774fa2ea0e52cb97eee213279f) Season 5 premiered on April 8, 2026, with two episodes followed by weekly releases, and the finale also screened in 4DX theaters in the United States and Canada on May 19, 2026.[18](https://www.aboutamazon.com/news/entertainment/the-boys-eric-kripke-season-5-prime-video)
## Satire and themes
The series deconstructs the superhero genre: early seasons revealed that the heroes' powers result from a corporation's experimentation, dismantling the mystique around DC and Marvel-style characters, and later seasons turned to the confusion between spectacle and politics and the collusion between industry and power.[19](https://www.lemonde.fr/culture/article/2024/06/18/the-boys-saison-4-sur-prime-de-la-critique-des-super-heros-a-la-satire-politique_6241105_3246.html) Its satire of celebrity culture and consumerism is central, since the superheroes are corporate brands within the world of the show.[20](https://www.commonsensemedia.org/tv-reviews/the-boys)
**Political satire.** As the seasons progressed, the show became an increasingly direct satire of American politics and Donald Trump. [Le Monde](https://www.edgepedia.org/le-monde) noted the perfect homology between [Homelander](https://www.edgepedia.org/homelander) and Trump in the season 4 premiere, and Foreign Policy called the series the most on-the-nose fictional take on Trumpism so far.[19](https://www.lemonde.fr/culture/article/2024/06/18/the-boys-saison-4-sur-prime-de-la-critique-des-super-heros-a-la-satire-politique_6241105_3246.html) • [8](https://foreignpolicy.com/2026/05/22/the-boys-tv-series-review-trump-homelander-superhero/) Kripke said the final season, in which Homelander essentially takes control of the United States, was based on the history of authoritarian creep in countries such as those in [Eastern Europe](https://www.edgepedia.org/eastern-europe), South America, and Germany, and developed "unsettling" parallels to current events.[1](https://apnews.com/article/41841d15aec14c8c571e293577a37320)
**Fascism and the Second World War.** Through the Nazi character Stormfront, the series draws on memories of the Second World War to condemn the rise of fascism in the twenty-first century, troubling the distinction between superhero and supervillain.[21](https://intellectdiscover.com/content/journals/10.1386/ajpc_00066_1)
**Violence and mental health.** The series is recognized for its graphic depictions of violence; in a Film Quarterly essay, Anthony Michael D'Agostino, an [English literature](https://www.edgepedia.org/english-literature) professor at Fordham University, contends that Kripke transforms the comic book superhero's violence, aestheticized through ideology, into a nihilistic and horrifying violence belonging to the body horror monster.[22](https://online.ucpress.edu/fq/article-abstract/79/4/58/218297/The-Control-Horror-of-The-Boys-and-Gen-V?redirectedFrom=fulltext) An academic study applying Derrida's deconstruction found that the series' superheroes, portrayed as villains, display behaviors aligning with DSM-5 mental disorders, but that the show risks reinforcing stigma by linking mental disorders to violence through unrealistic and exclusionary representations.[23](https://repositorioinstitucional.ceu.es/entities/publication/6d12bded-6f3a-4c44-a3ba-21f2d42e4118)
## Relationship to the comic
The television series is a deliberate reworking rather than a page-for-page translation. Kripke and Ennis agreed from the start that the story would have to change in adaptation.[14](https://www.cgmagonline.com/interviews/the-boys-season-4-eric-kripke/?_rt=NHwxfHRoZSBib3lzfDE3MjU2NDg5MTk&_rt_nonce=c5c1a47522) Ennis and Robertson serve as executive producers on the series.[24](https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=mhemR4teMnc)
## Reception
Season 1 received an 85% Tomatometer score on Rotten Tomatoes, with a critics' consensus noting the show's violent delights and willingness to engage in heavy, relevant themes; later seasons scored higher, with seasons 4 and 5 both at 92% and season 3 at 98%.[5](https://www.rottentomatoes.com/tv/the_boys_2019) Season 5 earned a Metascore of 75 on Metacritic, classified as generally favorable, with 15 positive, 3 mixed, and 0 negative reviews among those counted.[6](https://www.metacritic.com/tv/the-boys/critic-reviews/?season=season-5) Critics of the final season praised its satire and performances; one review in Next Best Picture judged that the series had "finally run out of steam" while remaining immensely watchable.[25](https://editorial.rottentomatoes.com/article/the-boys-season-5-first-reviews/) Audience response to the finale was more divided, with the season 5 Popcornmeter at 48% and fan reactions to the last episode described as dismay and disbelief.[5](https://www.rottentomatoes.com/tv/the_boys_2019) • [26](https://www.techradar.com/streaming/amazon-prime-video/the-entire-season-meant-nothing-the-boys-viewers-react-with-dismay-and-disbelief-to-the-popular-prime-video-shows-absolutely-trash-series-finale) The series has won Emmy awards.[18](https://www.aboutamazon.com/news/entertainment/the-boys-eric-kripke-season-5-prime-video)
## References
1. [As 'The Boys' ends, actors reveal their craziest stunts and what's next for Vought, AP News](https://apnews.com/article/41841d15aec14c8c571e293577a37320)
2. [The Boys: Season 1, Rotten Tomatoes](https://www.rottentomatoes.com/tv/the_boys_2019/s01)
3. [Seth Rogen Explains Why The Boys Never Became a Movie, Superhero Hype](https://www.superherohype.com/tv/510223-seth-rogen-explains-why-the-boys-never-became-a-movie)
4. [The Boys Season 5 cast & characters guide, About Amazon](https://www.aboutamazon.com/news/entertainment/the-boys-season-4-cast-guide-prime-video)
5. [The Boys (2019), Rotten Tomatoes](https://www.rottentomatoes.com/tv/the_boys_2019)
6. [The Boys critic reviews, Season 5, Metacritic](https://www.metacritic.com/tv/the-boys/critic-reviews/?season=season-5)
7. ['The Boys': All the Current and Upcoming Series and Spinoffs, TheWrap](https://www.thewrap.com/the-boys-universe-shows-spinoffs-diabolical-gen-v-mexico-vought-rising/)
8. [How 'The Boys' Became a Satire on Donald Trump, Foreign Policy](https://foreignpolicy.com/2026/05/22/the-boys-tv-series-review-trump-homelander-superhero/)
9. ["The Boys" Gets Too Close for Comfort, The New Yorker](https://www.newyorker.com/magazine/2024/07/08/the-boys-season-4-review)
10. [Columbia Whacks 'The Boys', ICv2](https://icv2.com/articles/comics/view/22136/columbia-whacks-the-boys)
11. [Why The Boys Movie Trilogy Was Canceled, Explained, Escapist Magazine](https://www.escapistmagazine.com/why-the-boys-movie-trilogy-was-canceled-explained/)
12. [Seth Rogen, Evan Goldberg to Develop 'The Boys' Adaptation for Cinemax, TheWrap](https://www.thewrap.com/seth-rogen-evan-goldberg-to-develop-the-boys-adaptation-for-cinemax/)
13. [Interview: Eric Kripke talks adapting The Boys for TV, Shacknews](https://www.shacknews.com/article/113024/interview-eric-kripke-talks-adapting-the-boys-for-tv)
14. [Series Creator Eric Kripke on The Boys' Past, Present & Future, CGMagazine](https://www.cgmagonline.com/interviews/the-boys-season-4-eric-kripke/?_rt=NHwxfHRoZSBib3lzfDE3MjU2NDg5MTk&_rt_nonce=c5c1a47522)
15. [The Boys creator reveals his original NSFW pitch for the show, GamesRadar+](https://www.gamesradar.com/entertainment/superhero-shows/the-boys-creator-reveals-his-original-nsfw-pitch-for-the-show-and-the-mash-up-we-never-got-to-see-deadpool-meets-inglorious-basterds-meets-the-raid/)
16. [Prime Video's top 10 has 3 shows worth binge-watching this week, Tom's Guide](https://www.tomsguide.com/entertainment/prime-video/prime-videos-top-10-has-3-shows-worth-binge-watching-this-week-including-the-boys-season-5-finale-may-20-26)
17. ['The Boys,' Amazon's hit superhero satire show, will end with Season 5, AP News](https://apnews.com/article/c23698774fa2ea0e52cb97eee213279f)
18. [The Boys Season 5 streaming now: How to watch on Prime Video, About Amazon](https://www.aboutamazon.com/news/entertainment/the-boys-eric-kripke-season-5-prime-video)
19. [« The Boys », saison 4, sur Prime : de la critique des super-héros à la satire politique, Le Monde](https://www.lemonde.fr/culture/article/2024/06/18/the-boys-saison-4-sur-prime-de-la-critique-des-super-heros-a-la-satire-politique_6241105_3246.html)
20. [The Boys - Parents' Guide & TV Review, Common Sense Media](https://www.commonsensemedia.org/tv-reviews/the-boys)
21. [Superheroes and Nazis: Re-examining the legacy of the Second World War in Eric Kripke's The Boys, Australasian Journal of Popular Culture](https://intellectdiscover.com/content/journals/10.1386/ajpc_00066_1)
22. [The Control Horror of The Boys and Gen V, Film Quarterly](https://online.ucpress.edu/fq/article-abstract/79/4/58/218297/The-Control-Horror-of-The-Boys-and-Gen-V?redirectedFrom=fulltext)
23. [Deconstruction of the superhero subgenre in The Boys: A social satire through characters with mental disorders, CEU Repository](https://repositorioinstitucional.ceu.es/entities/publication/6d12bded-6f3a-4c44-a3ba-21f2d42e4118)
24. [The Boys - Official Season 5 Final Trailer (2026), IGN on YouTube](https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=mhemR4teMnc)
25. [The Boys: Season 5 First Reviews, Rotten Tomatoes](https://editorial.rottentomatoes.com/article/the-boys-season-5-first-reviews/)
26. ['The entire season meant nothing': The Boys viewers react to the series finale, TechRadar](https://www.techradar.com/streaming/amazon-prime-video/the-entire-season-meant-nothing-the-boys-viewers-react-with-dismay-and-disbelief-to-the-popular-prime-video-shows-absolutely-trash-series-finale)
27. ['The Boys' Supe College Spinoff Is 'Loosely Inspired' by 'X-Men' Parody From Comics, TheWrap](https://www.thewrap.com/the-boys-spinoff-superhero-college-series-gmen-comics-xmen-parody-eric-kripke/)
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*Topic: Encyclopedia › Arts and culture › Screen and stage › Film and television › Series and fictional screen worlds › Scripted television and comedy series › Adapted and franchise screen series › Comic-book and superhero television series*
*Initially written Sep 17, 2026 · Reviewed: Sep 20, 2026; Sep 30, 2026; Oct 3, 2026; Oct 25, 2026 · Edited: Sep 30, 2026; Oct 3, 2026; Oct 25, 2026; Nov 1, 2026 · Last review: Oct 25, 2026*
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