After a long build-up, Amazon Studios’ new superhero satire ‘The Boys’ has finally premiered and the reaction has been largely positive– 77% on Rotten Tomatoes, with a 92% audience score. The show is an ensemble with two opposing teams, the titular group of blue-collar tough guys and the glistening superheroes they oppose. Karl Urban‘s Billy Butcher is at the center of it all, despite the fact that Urban declares “he is fun, he’s a rascal, he’s Machiavellian, he’s duplicitous, he’s a liar and a cheat, he’s wonderfully charismatic, but also brutally tough and scary.” The ruthless Butcher is the leader of The Boys and is mainly responsible for initiating their newest recruit Hughie, played by Jack Quaid.
During an in-depth interview with Collider, Urban discussed working with Quaid and the connection between their two characters. He also teased that although his character may be a bit of a mystery to viewers at first, things will be made clear as the series evolves:
“I love working with Jack. We’re so different, not only as people, but as characters, and that is why the chemistry really works, on screen. It’s the odd couple. For me, the material that I enjoyed the most was always when I was exploiting and manipulating Hughie. Billy lies to him and tries to get him to do what he wants him to do, but there’s also a genuine bond that forms. Billy Butcher really thinks of Hughie as a brother, which adds an emotional complexity that takes Billy Butcher off guard, a little bit. Up until now, he’s been very emotionally shut down because he needs to be that guy, in order to do his job.
“You’re gonna learn the full story. You’ll learn the backstory of Billy Butcher and what has turned him into the man he is today. As fun as this character is to play – and he is fun, he’s a rascal, he’s Machiavellian, he’s duplicitous, he’s a liar and a cheat, he’s wonderfully charismatic, but also brutally tough and scary – at the heart of it, there’s this tragedy, which is the tragedy of love. It’s something that I hope really endears Billy to an audience.”
The first season of ‘The Boys’ consists of eight episodes and Amazon Prime Video has already ordered a second batch. In addition to Urban and Quaid, the cast consists of Laz Alonso, Chace Crawford, Karen Fukuhara, Tomer Kapon, Dominique McElligott, Nathan Mitchell, Erin Moriarty, Elisabeth Shue, Antony Starr, and Jessie T. Usher. It has also been announced that Aya Cash has been cast as the superhero Stormfront in the second season.
‘The Boys’ Season One is now available to stream on Amazon Prime Video.
