To bastardize Harvey Dent’s wise words to Bruce Wayne, you either end your show as a deconstruction or keep it running long enough to watch it become what it set out to parody. Reno 911 parodied Cops, but countless reboots and sequels made it a parody of itself. Scream started as a deconstruction of horror movies, but soon became one of the major franchises in the horror genre.
From the get-go, that was a concern for The Boys, an adaptation of Garth Ennis’ comics that sought to take down the superhero movie machine with a gory edge. After its fourth season and multiple spinoffs, fans were worried The Boys would become as cash-grabby as the franchises it spoofed. But the creator of the series reassures fans of show that he is aware The Boys becoming yet another superhero franchise would only undercut its message.
Eric Kripke has seen firsthand what happens when a show goes on too long. He previously was the showrunner of Supernatural, a show that stretched for 15 seasons, but crucially, he left after the fifth season. Now, that trend is continuing with The Boys: its next season, Season 5, will be its last.
But the end of The Boys doesn’t mean the end of The Boys Cinematic Universe: college-focused spinoff Gen V is returning for a second season, The Boys: Mexico was greenlit in 2023, and Amazon announced prequel series Vought Rising at Comic-Con this year.
In an interview with Collider, Kripke made it clear he is incredibly aware of how all these spinoffs taint The Boys’ original message. “I live in absolute terror of becoming the thing we’ve been satirizing for five years,” he said. “The thing about The Boys is that it’s punk rock, and it hurts extra hard when punk rockers sell out. I’m really working hard to not sell out.”
He still defends the choice to create so many spinoffs, however. “We do these shows because we really care about them and we’re passionate about them,” he said. “They can tell fresh stories that we can’t tell in The Boys and not just be about rapid expansion but be very careful and mindful about the choices we’re making and being able to defend why we’re making them.”
So while The Boys may be ever-expanding, it’s done in a way that’s at least mindful and aware of how it all could be perceived. Eric Kripke has always done everything he can to keep the soul of the original story alive even after spinoffs and four seasons — hopefully, that won’t be diluted as the universe sprawls out.
