As season 3 of The Boys comes to an end, all of our minds are wondering 'What now?' Eric Kripke left season 3 on a shocking cliffhanger making us beg for more. This series gave a variety of different superpowers all in the same city. It is a witty superhero series in which each episode can leave you either squeamish, shocked, stressed, or laughing on the floor.
The characters in this series were comedic gold, especially our beloved villain Homelander (Antony Starr), however, Prime Video will only release the new season of The Boys in late 2023 at the earliest, so what do we watch while we wait? We can use many amazing movies as time fillers, including Hancock, Code 8, and Suicide Squad.
'Hancock' (2008)
Hancock is an action/fantasy movie released in 2008 starring Will Smith and Jason Bateman (Ozark). This movie aligns with The Boys' mashup of seriousness and comedy all in one. It is about a deadbeat man called John Hancock with superpowers who has no motivation, love, or care for life and others. When Ray Embrey meets the notorious Hancock, he decides to help him change the public perception of him from useless and dangerous to helpful and heroic.
You will love Hancock if you loved The Boys as it shows the side of how someone can use superpowers - for good and bad. It also satisfies the comedy expected after watching Homelander's and Butchers' one-liners. Hancock's character is a mix of Butcher's personality, Homelander's status, and Hughie's soft spots. This movie, like The Boys, will have you laughing and shook all in the same scene and is definitely worth the watch to see the twisting ending.
'Code 8' (2019)
Code 8 is a sci-fi/thriller that came out in 2019 starring Robbie Amell (The DUFF). This movie is set in a world where people with supernatural abilities are discriminated against. These power-enabled people are shunned from jobs, arrested for no reason, and feared by the public instead of being seen as heroes. Connor Reed has class 5 electric powers and is hoping to use his powers to gain enough money to help his sick mother. This endearing attempt turns dark when he gets tied into the wrong crowd.
This movie is similar to The Boys as powers were shunned and feared by the public at the start, the only difference is that this discrimination never changes in Code 8. It has a variety of different characters with different powers including electrical abilities, telekinesis, healing abilities, mind reading, and superstrength. This movie removes comedy from the table, but is a fascinating watch as if powers were never normalized.
'Suicide Squad' (2019)
Suicide Squad is a superhero/fantasy film series with a cheeky comedic side. It came out in 2016 and released a second movie in 2021 starring several loved celebrities including Margot Robbie, Will Smith, Cara Delevingne, Pete Davidson, and David Harbour from Stranger Things. This film series follows a group of supervillains who are forced by the government to help defeat an even bigger evil.
The group of supervillains' personalities shine through the screen like The Boys as Harley Quin is a flirty, ditsy character longing for love, Deadshot is a serious character that screams Black Noir vibes as he never misses a shot, and Katana is a highly skilled swordswoman giving Queen Maeve characteristics as she is a strong, powerful woman who fights her corner. This film series corresponds to the idea of a group of people with superpowers fighting for a cause, yet, having little good intentions while carrying it out.
'Chronicle' (2012)
Chronicle is a sci-fi/thriller movie released in 2012 starring a young Michael B. Jordan. It is about three teenage friends who gain superpowers from a mysterious tunnel in their small town. This movie shows how the lives of innocent, moody teenagers can end in pain, death, and disaster if superpowers get into naive or selfish hands. It has a unique angle of being shot in "found footage" throughout the movie.
This movie falls in line with all the things that can go wrong with superpowers like in The Boys. It shows the dark side of great power, even in innocent hands. These teenagers gain telekinetic powers like Cindy and Kenji in The Boys. The public is unaware of these gained powers and so, instead of others trying to fight against their bad intentions, they have to fight one another.
'Superman' (2021)
The Superman film series ranges from the years 1951 to 2020 following an alien being who tries to blend into normal daily life, however, if someone needs help, he'll rip off his business suit and come to the rescue. Superman is played by many actors including Christopher Reeve, Dean Cain, Brandon Routh, Henry Cavil, and Tyler Hoechlin (Teen Wolf). Superman fights many competitors to save mankind all while tackling his simple, normal life problems as well.
Superman is the most contradictory, yet complimentary character to Homelander. They both wear an American flag-styled costume, both can fly, both can fire lasers from their eyes, and both have superstrength. The only difference is that Homelander is a self-absorbed, evil character and Superman is a selfless, heroic character. Superman's weakness is Kryptonite, however, Homelander's weakness is his extreme need for love and adoration.
'Deadpool' (2016)
Deadpool is a comedic superhero film series released in 2016 and 2018 starring Ryan Reynolds. It follows a former special forces operative named Wade Wilson who was tortured and tested on by an evil scientist to create mutant superpowers resulting in the formation of Deadpool. Wade uses his powers to hilariously hunt down the scientist who destroyed his life.
You will love this movie series if you loved The Boys as it aligns with the same cheeky, sarcastic, and comedic comebacks as The Boys. Superpowers in both film series are man-made and involuntary creations by a powerful, twisted doctor. If your favorite part of The Boys is the laughs and sarcasm then you will love the Deadpool movies.
'Guardians of the Galaxy' (2014)
The Guardians of the Galaxy film series was released in 2014 and there is a third volume coming in 2023 starring Chris Pratt as Star-Lord. This is another comedic action/sci-fi series based on Marvel comic superheroes, however, these superheroes started as misfitted criminals who accidentally discovered the universe was in grave danger. This mismatched group forms a strange alliance to save the universe.
This film series will make you laugh and cry all in one. It is a satisfactory watch containing a variety of superpowers like The Boys including superstrength, precognition, healing powers, durability, psychic abilities, and acute senses. These series have overlapping character personalities as Star-Lord has the innocence of Hughie, Yondu has the grittiness of Butcher, Rocket Raccoon has the hyperactivity of Frenchie, and Groot is simply just cute to watch.