| The Boys | |
|---|---|
| Season 4 | |
 Promotional poster | |
| Showrunner | Eric Kripke |
| Starring | |
| No. of episodes | 8 |
| Release | |
| Original network | Amazon Prime Video |
| Original release | June 13 – July 18, 2024 |
| Season chronology | |
The fourth season of the American satirical superhero television series The Boys, the first series in the franchise based on the comic book series of the same name written by Garth Ennis and Darick Robertson, was developed for television by American writer and television producer Eric Kripke. The season is produced by Sony Pictures Television in association with Point Grey Pictures, Original Film, Kripke Enterprises, Kickstart Entertainment and KFL Nightsky Productions.
The show's fourth season stars Karl Urban, Jack Quaid, Antony Starr, Erin Moriarty, Jessie T. Usher, Laz Alonso, Chace Crawford, Tomer Capone, Karen Fukuhara, Nathan Mitchell, Colby Minifie, Claudia Doumit, and Cameron Crovetti returning from prior seasons, with Susan Heyward, Valorie Curry, and Jeffrey Dean Morgan joining the cast. Taking place six months after the events of the previous season, The Boys work with the CIA to assassinate Victoria Neuman (Doumit) in an effort to stop her from taking over the government. Concurrently, Neuman is closer than ever to the Oval Office and under the muscly thumb of Homelander (Starr), who is consolidating his power. With only months to live, Butcher (Urban) has lost his position as leader of The Boys, who are fed up with his lies, and must find a way to work with them if they want to save the world before it's too late. The season shares continuity with the spinoff series Gen V and is set after the conclusion of its first season (2023).[1]
The fourth season was announced following the third season premiere. Its first three episodes were released on the streaming service Amazon Prime Video on June 13, 2024, after which episodes were released on a weekly basis. The season received positive reviews with praise towards its action sequences, character development, emotional depth, storyline, blend of political commentary and surrealism, unique combination of violence, humor and social commentary, and performances (particularly Urban, Quaid, Starr, and Moriarty), lauding its bold approach to tackling complex themes and pushing narrative boundaries.[2] However, multiple critics and publications have considered it the most polarizing and darkest season yet.[3]
On May 14, 2024, the series was renewed for a fifth season. On June 11, two days before the fourth season premiered, Kripke announced that the fifth season would serve as the final season.[4][5][6]
- ^ Multiple sources:
- Romano, Nick (October 20, 2023). "'Gen V' finale will include a 'handoff' to 'The Boys' Season 4". Entertainment Weekly. Retrieved August 5, 2024.
- Maas, Jennifer (November 3, 2023). "'The Boys' Season 4: How Those 'Gen V' Finale Cameos and Mid-Credits Scene Set Up Virus Storyline". Variety. Retrieved August 5, 2024.
- Garbutt, Emily (November 6, 2023). "'The Boys' Season 4 will pick up 'a couple of days' after the 'Gen V' finale". GamesRadar+. Retrieved August 5, 2024.
- Khalili, Isabel (December 8, 2023). "How 'The Boys' Season 4 is Connected to 'Gen V'". CBR. Retrieved August 5, 2024.
- Laib, Shawn; Bojalad, Alec (June 28, 2024). "'The Boys' Season 4 Showrunner Eric Kripke Explains That Big 'Gen V' Crossover". Den of Geek. Retrieved August 5, 2024.
- ^ Multiple sources:
- Cassidy, Mark (June 11, 2024). "'The Boys': Season 4 Gets (Mostly) Positive First Reviews – But Are the Cracks Starting to Show?". Comic Book Movie. Retrieved July 1, 2024.
- Wolinsky, David (June 11, 2024). "Review Roundup for 'The Boys' Season 4". GameSpot. Retrieved July 1, 2024.
- Campbell, Christopher (June 11, 2024). "'The Boys': Season 4 First Reviews: Still Bold, Bloody, and Funny, But Bleaker Than Ever". Rotten Tomatoes. Retrieved July 1, 2024.
- Gearan, Hannah (June 11, 2024). "'The Boys' Season 4 Rotten Tomatoes Score Debuts with Series Low (But It's Still Fresh)". Screen Rant. Retrieved July 1, 2024.
- Moore, Trent (June 11, 2024). "'The Boys' Are Back and as Screwed as Ever in Excellent Fourth Season". Paste. Retrieved July 1, 2024.
- Ricci, Kimberly (June 11, 2024). "Yes, 'The Boys' Season 4 Still Prioritizes Delivering Depravity, But The Show's Storytelling Has Never Been Better". Uproxx. Retrieved July 1, 2024.
- Vito Oddo, Marco (June 11, 2024). "Review: 'The Boys' Season 4 Goes Bigger, Bolder, and Bloodier Than Ever". We Got This Covered. Retrieved July 1, 2024.
- Yemi, Frank (June 15, 2024). "'The Boys' Showrunner Celebrates Season 4's Rotten Tomatoes Score". CBR. Retrieved July 1, 2024.
- Jordan, Leila (June 20, 2024). "The MVP: Antony Starr Makes 'The Boys' Stronger, Smarter, and Better". Paste. Retrieved July 1, 2024.
- Shivakumar, Visvesh (June 22, 2024). "'The Boys' Season 4: Antony Starr's 'Emmy Worthy' scene in Episode 4 takes internet by storm, fans laud him as 'Best Villain'". MEAWW. Retrieved July 1, 2024.
- Rivera, Joshua (June 22, 2024). "No one should be as good as Antony Starr is at being Homelander". Polygon. Retrieved July 1, 2024.
- Gelman, Vlada (June 30, 2024). "Performers of the Week: Jack Quaid and Simon Pegg". TVLine. Retrieved July 1, 2024.
- Gelman, Vlada (July 20, 2024). "Performer of the Week: Erin Moriarty". TVLine. Retrieved July 20, 2024.
- ^ Multiple sources:
- Hood, Cooper (April 23, 2023). "8 Reasons 'The Boys' Season 4 Will Be the Darkest Yet". Screen Rant. Retrieved July 6, 2024.
- Travers, Ben (June 11, 2024). "'The Boys' Season 4 Boasts Extra Bite". IndieWire. Retrieved July 6, 2024.
- Broadway, Danielle (June 11, 2024). "'The Boys' Season 4 plunges into political polarization". Reuters. Retrieved July 6, 2024.
- Power, Tom (June 11, 2024). "'The Boys' Season 4 is bold, brash, and brutal – but I'm worried the hit Prime Video show might be losing its superpowered edge". TechRadar. Retrieved July 6, 2024.
- Herman, Alison (June 11, 2024). "'The Boys' Suffers Growing Pains in Its Darkest Season Yet: TV Review". Variety. Retrieved July 6, 2024.
- Archer, Greg (June 11, 2024). "'The Boys' Season 4 Review: Still Fun, But Much Darker and with Shaky Storytelling". MovieWeb. Retrieved July 6, 2024.
- Onion, Rebecca (June 22, 2024). "'The Boys' Feels Different in 2024. Is the Problem the Show—or Us?". Slate. Retrieved July 6, 2024.
- Johnson, Michael (July 6, 2024). "'The Boys' Season 4: Reflecting on the show's most polarizing season so far". Bam! Smack! Pow!. Retrieved July 6, 2024.
- ^ Maas, Jennifer (May 14, 2024). "'The Boys' Renewed for Season 5 at Amazon". Variety. Retrieved June 15, 2024.
- ^ @therealKripke (June 11, 2024). "#TheBoys Season 4 Premiere Week is a good time to announce: Season 5 will be the Final Season! Always my plan, I just had to be cagey till I got the final OK from Vought. Thrilled to bring the story to a gory, epic, moist climax. Watch Season 4 in 2 DAYS, cause the end has begun!" (Tweet). Retrieved June 15, 2024 – via Twitter.
- ^ Maas, Jennifer (June 11, 2024). "'The Boys' to End with Season 5 on Amazon". Variety. Retrieved June 15, 2024.