The Prime Video hit The Boys answered many fan questions in its Season 3 finale, including Soldier Boy's shady past and a glimpse into the powers held by Homelander's son Ryan Butcher. The Boys is an expertly crafted satirization of the dominant superhero culture and real-world connections to the American military-industrial complex. Season 3 followed past seasons' shocking and unforgettable openings, with the first episode alluding to the NSFW Ant-Man and Thanos meme that dominated the internet leading up to Avengers: Endgame. Changes to the source material have allowed The Boys to keep its commentary relevant but can make looking to the comics for answers futile. What can audiences look forward to in the upcoming season?

Editor's Note: This piece was updated on April 13, 2024.

Does 'The Boys' Season 4 Have a Release Date?

It was announced that the series had been renewed for a fourth season back in June 2022.

Prime Video has revealed that the first three episodes of Season 4 will premiere on Thursday, June 13, 2024, two years after The Boys Season 3 premiered in June 2022. New episodes will drop weekly, leading up to the season finale on July 18, 2024.

Does 'The Boys' Season 4 Have a Trailer?

Yes, the first teaser trailer for The Boys Season 4 was released online after premiering at the 2023 edition of CCXP. The new teaser trailer teases the most politically charged season of the superhero satire yet, as an election looms large, and Homelander begins to spiral even further and further out of control.

What Characters Are Returning for Season 4?

While we've had many characters exit the show, our core cast members have mostly gone unchanged. Returning this season are Karl Urban (Billy Butcher), Antony Starr (Homelander), Jack Quaid (Hughie Campbell), Erin Moriarty (Starlight), Jessie T. Usher (A-Train), Chace Crawford (The Deep), Karen Fukuhara (Kimiko Miyashiro), Tomer Capone (Frenchy), Colby Minifie (Ashley Barrett), and Cameron Crovetti (Ryan).

Who Are the New Characters in 'The Boys' Season 4?

Two costumes for previously unseen supes have been revealed. Firecracker is a redhead with a red, white, and blue outfit and a firearm holstered to her hip. Due to The Boys' previous representation of American nationalism, her colors may hint at questionable morals and a possible alliance with Homelander. Firecracker's powers are currently unknown, but her name alludes to pyrokinesis in the vein of The Fantastic Four's Human Torch or even the use of flamethrowers such as DC's Firefly. Her red hair, skintight suit, and weapon also draw similarities to Scarlett Johansson's MCU Black Widow. Supes in The Boys have very rarely used weapons thus far, with the exception of Soldier Boy and Gunpowder, so the inclusion of her firearm in the promo photos raises many questions about Firecracker's role at Vought. Valorie Curry will play Firecracker. Curry previously appeared in The Twilight Saga as Charlotte, a nomadic vampire who was changed by the same vampire as Jasper Cullen, and in Amazon's live-action adaptation of The Tick as Dot Everest, the sister of The Tick's sidekick, Arthur.

The second costume revealed is another character unique to the series, Sister Sage. Sister Sage's stunningly ornate costume uses textured gold and brown fabrics, accentuated by her golden dreadlocks and sunglasses with brown lenses. Her fingers are anointed with rings, which may lend to the theory that she will be a magic user with powers similar to those shown in Shang Chi and The Legend of The Ten Rings. Her name has drawn comparison to Marvel's Runaways character Nico Minoru, another magic user, who is sometimes referred to as Sister Grimm. Her textures and color palate evoke memories of the snake motif used in Marvel's Luke Cage, perhaps hinting towards super strength and a deeper commentary on the race relations lurking beneath the surface of The Boys. Despite Vought's historic ties to Nazism and growing nationalism brewing all around them, The Boys has shied away from making meaningful commentary on the subject. Susan Heyward has been cast as Sister Sage. Heyward may be recognizable to fans of Orange is The New Black, appearing as Tamika Ward in the later seasons of the Netflix Original.

The Walking Dead alum Jeffrey Dean Morgan will also be joining the cast of Season 4 in an undisclosed role. Another newcomer will be Rosemarie Dewitt (La La Land) who is joining the cast as Hughie's Mom. In the series, Hughie's parents divorced with his father receiving full custody, and since then, he has never heard from his mother. Simon Pegg, who had a recurring role as Hughie's Dad in Season 1 (and served as the inspiration for Hughie's design in Garth Ennis' comics) will be reprising his role for Season 4, after sitting out for Season 2 and having a blink, and you'll miss it cameo (via phone call) in Season 3.

Rob Benedict, who some will know for playing the 'holy' role of Chuck Shurley in Supernatural, will also be joining the cast in an undisclosed role as well as Elliot Knight, who played the role of Dove in two episodes of the HBO Max superhero series Titans.

What Is Season 4 of 'The Boys' About?

The official plot synopsis for The Boys Season 4 reads:

The world is on the brink. Victoria Neuman is closer than ever to the Oval Office and under the muscly thumb of Homelander, who is consolidating his power. Butcher, with only months to live, has lost Becca’s son as well as his job as The Boys’ leader. The rest of the team are fed up with his lies. With the stakes higher than ever, they have to find a way to work together and save the world before it’s too late.

Showrunner Eric Kripke confirmed Season 4 would revolve around The Butcher and Homelander's fight over Ryan, comparing their situation to the 1980s sitcom My Two Dads. In the interview, he said he views The Butcher and Homelander as parallels, stating he considers their relationship like Batman and The Joker or Holmes and Moriarty. Aside from a deep, personal hatred, there lies an intimate understanding of one another. With the stakes rising as Ryan grows up, the two men have much more in common than they'd like to admit. Kripke stated the next season will also largely focus on the rise of Victoria Neuman. A morally gray supe in the White House that can kill anyone instantly will likely be an issue for both Vought and The Boys.

When and Where Did 'The Boys' Season 4 Film?

Due to leaked on-set photos, the cast was confirmed to be shooting Season 4 in Toronto in August 2022. Filming of the highly anticipated season wrapped in April 2023, and post-production was completed in April 2024.

Where Can I Get More Content From The Boys Universe?

The comic series The Boys, written by Garth Ennis, was originally published between 2007 and 2012. The series spans seventy-two issues and were collected into six volumes. There have been four spin-off miniseries, of which the first three have been included in the "Definitive Edition." The most recent series, "Dear Becky" was written in 2021 and follows Hughie and Annie's relationship twelve years after the events of The Boys.

The Boys Presents: Diabolical is an animated spin-off series on Amazon Prime. The show has an all-star writing team featuring Garth Ennis, Eric Kripke, Seth Rogen, Evan Goldberg, Justin Roiland, Ilana Glazer, Awkwafina, and Andy Sandberg. Each episode is a standalone glance into The Boys universe, utilizing a different animation and writing style for each story.

Another spin-off series, Gen V, premiered on September 29, 2023. The series chronicles the lives of aspiring supes at Godolkin University.

The final of Gen V, which featured cameos from both Billy Butcher and Homelander will tie directly into Season 4 of The Boys. In an interview with Collider, Kripke revealed that Butcher's cameo serves as a direct lead-in to the new season:

"But the intent was to start setting the table for Season 4 of The Boys. It’s not a spoiler to say that the virus that was created in Gen V plays a big part of the storyline in Season 4 and that we knew we wanted Butcher to be aware of it. That’s really one of the fun things of having these two series, you can go back and set up an important step in Michele [Fazekas]’ show, and then carry it forward into ours."

Additionally, free online content for The Boys has also been produced for both Twitter and YouTube. On Twitter, two short films starring The Butcher were published in September 2020 and 2022. The films are set between significant events in the show and provide more context to what The Butcher does in the aftermath of these battles. During shooting delays due to COVID-19, The Boys released Seven on 7. The web series is an in-universe news show owned by Vought International, hosted by a parody of real-world commentator Tucker Carlson and the Marvel Comics character J. Jonah Jameson, and teased events in Season 3. Another piece of in-universe media, Deeper and Deeper, is an Audible podcast that stars The Deep and his wife, Cassandra, as they are interviewed about their personal lives and events involving The Seven.