The Boys season 4: Prime Video release date, trailer, cast list, plot synopsis, and more

It's been a long two-year wait, but The Boys season 4 has finally landed on our screens. So, is the satirical superhero show's latest entry worth watching on Prime Video? You'll need to read our spoiler-light review of The Boys season 4 to see what we thought of its first three episodes. Once you're done, we suspect you'll want to learn even more about what's in store for The Boys' new season, too.

Below, you'll find a comprehensive round-up of everything we know about one of the best Prime Video shows' return, including its release schedule, full cast list, plot details, its ties to spin-off series Gen V, and the popular R-rated show's future. Major spoilers follow for The Boys season 3 and Gen V season 1 on one of the world's best streaming services. Potential season 4 spoilers are also discussed.

The Boys season 4 release date

The Boys season 4 debuted on Amazon's main streamer on Thursday, June 13. As the above X/Twitter post revealed, the first three episodes were released on launch day. The other five were released weekly up to the season finale on July 18.

The Boys season 4 trailers

The Boys – Season 4 Official Trailer | Prime Video - YouTube

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The Boys season 4's official trailer arrived in early May, and it revealed more ties to spin-off show Gen V, Supe-d up farm animals, and a battle for America's soul.

Missed season 4's first trailer, which teased the introduction of new Supes, Jeffrey Dean Morgan's mysterious character, and a fan-based showdown between Homelander and Starlight in December 2023? Watch it below:

The Boys – Season 4 Official Teaser Trailer | Prime Video - YouTube

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The Boys season 4 cast

Major spoilers follow for The Boys season 3.

Here's the confirmed cast for The Boys season 4:

• Karl Urban as William 'Billy' Butcher
• Jack Quaid as Hugh 'Hughie' Campbell
• Erin Moriarty as Annie January/Starlight
• Anthony Starr as Homelander
• Laz Alonso as Mother's Milk
• Tomer Capone as Frenchie
• Karen Fukuhara as Kimiko Miyashiro
• Jessie T Usher as A-Train
• Chace Crawford as The Deep
• Colby Minifie as Ashley Barrett
• Nathan Mitchell as Black Noir
• Claudia Doumit as Victoria Neuman
• Cameron Crovetti as Ryan Butcher
• Valorie Curry as Firecracker
• Susan Heyward as Sister Sage
• Simon Pegg as Hugh Campbell Sr
• Rosemarie DeWitt as Daphne Campbell
• Jeffrey Dean Morgan as TBA

Of the above, everyone up to including Crovetti have featured heavily throughout the show's first three seasons.

The only curious inclusion among that contingent is Mitchell's Black Noir, who was murdered by Homelander in The Boys season 3 finale. Speaking to Entertainment Weekly (EW), Kripke teased Mitchell will be back as Black Noir 2.0, which was made official in season 4's two trailers. Both sets of footage also confirmed that Neuman's daughter Zoe (Olivia Morandin) will show up following her season 3 debut.

Joining the cast in major roles are Valorie Curry (Veronica Mars) and Susan Heyward (Orange Is the New Black) as Firecracker and Sister Sage. This pair are the Seven's newest members and wholly original creations for the TV adaptation – indeed, neither character exists in Garth Ennis and Darick Robertson's graphic novel series, which the show is based on.

Of Sage's superpower – being the smartest person on the planet – Kripke told EW: "A lot of superhero worlds have that character. Whereas most of them are usually really reedy white dudes, we wanted a Black woman who was raised in a low socioeconomic area, so no one f*****g listens to her. It's both commentary and satirical that you have literally the smartest person in the world that could cure all of society's ills, but she just can't get anyone to listen to her. So then she becomes a bitter misanthrope."

As for Curry's gun-toting extremist, The Boys' showrunner added: "Firecracker represents both members of the conspiracy-minded movements and the super extreme right-wing news media. That character has some surprising backstory that connects her to some of the characters in our world that it was just interesting to bring in one of those pistol-packing 'I shot my puppies' type of characters."

Fresh from his love-to-hate portrayal of The Walking Dead's Negan in AMC's TV adaptation of that comic series, Jeffrey Dean Morgan has also been cast in The Boys season 4. He appears in both trailers, but we can't (or, rather, won't) spoil who's playing until season 4 airs.

Meanwhile, nyone hoping to see Jensen Ackles' Soldier Boy again might be disappointed that he won't be back (more on why in the next section). That said, the former Supernatural star is eager to reprise the role of Homelander's dad and human-based weapon of mass destruction. After his dream-based cameo appearance in Gen V, we're desperate to see Ackles' fan-favorite character return.

Speaking of Gen V, Cate (Maddie Phillips) and Sam (Asa Germann) will appear. The pair were invited to Vought's headquarters in the spin-offs's season 1 finale – you can read more details on why they were in our Gen V season 1 ending explained article. Lastly, Kripke has already teased Tek Knight's possible involvement in the main show's next installment – he also made his live-action debut in Gen V season 1, so expect to see him make a cameo at the very least.

The Boys season 4 story synopsis and speculation

Here's The Boys season 4's official story synopsis: "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."

The Boys is renowned for being a boundary-pushing TV show from gore, sex, and outrageously funny perspectives, and it sounds like season 4 will be no different. Speaking to Collider, Usher – who plays A-Train – says the level of carnage in season 4 was "a surprise to everyone". Kripke also tweeted there's a wildly over-the-top sequence in season 4 that's "easily a top 5 moment" for him. Kripke's comments were echoed by producer Stephan Fleet, who suggests it contains a moment that's "the most disgusting thing I have seen working in this business thus far."

Major spoilers follow for The Boys seasons 2 and 3, plus Gen V season 1.

The Boys season 3 left off with Homelander taking Ryan – his superpowered son – under his autocratic wing following the three-way battle between Homelander, the Boys, and Soldier Boy. After Homelander brutally murders a Starlight fan (they throw a drink at Ryan during a political rally) and the crowd erupts with delight, the smiles that spread across Homelander and Ryan's faces paint a very unsettling picture for what's to come.

Is Homelander about to raise Ryan as his equally callous, unhinged successor? In a chat with IGN, Kripke wouldn't say, but suggested events in season 4 will impact Ryan's fractious relationship with Billy. Remember, Ryan is the illegitimate love child of Homelander and Billy's deceased ex-wife Becca. At the end of season 2, Billy promised a dying Becca he'd protect Ryan in her absence. However, Billy alienates Ryan over the course of season 3, leading Ryan to disown Billy and seek solace with his biological dad.

Season 4, then, should see Billy and Homelander battle for Ryan's soul. If Billy wins, his team could have their own Homelander who can go up against his similarly superpowered father. If Homelander is victorious, there may be no stopping the pair from dictatorially ruling the US – and maybe even the world.

Ryan won't be the only weapon Homelander has heading into season 4. He's still in command of the Seven, which will be back to near-full strength with Sage, Firecracker, and Noir 2.0 joining him, The Deep, and A-Train on the roster. 

Homelander has some issues to contend with, though. Gen V season 1 revealed he'll stand trial for murdering the aforementioned Starlight fan. Additionally, the spin-off confirmed the existence of a Supe-killing virus, which is now in Victoria Neuman's possession. As Gen V and the X/Twitter post below (which contains some important timeline and story information) revealed, Billy is also aware of the virus, so it's possible he'll try to acquire it to wipe out Supes everywhere. Well, as long as he can prevent it from hurting or killing Ryan (remember, he's still trying to keep his promise to Becca to keep Ryan safe).

Speaking of Billy, he's on borrowed time. In season 3, he became addicted to V24, an experimental Vought-developed serum that grants its user superpowers for a 24-hour period. Unfortunately, V24 causes a highly aggressive form of cancer to develop in its host. In short: Billy only has 12 to 18 months left to live. True to form, he decides to keep his diagnosis secret from the rest of the group, which isn't a great idea, in our view.

But that's an issue for later. Heading into season 4, Billy has two priorities: the aforementioned Homelander and Ryan problem, which we've already covered, and thwarting Neuman.

In season 2's final episode, Neuman was revealed as a secret Supe, who possesses the ability to blow up peoples' heads. Hughie, who was hired by Neuman when the Boys temporarily disbanded in season 2's final episode, learns about this in season 3, digs into her past, and discovers Neuman is the adopted daughter of Stan Edgar. Vought's former CEO helped Neuman's political rise to power before she betrayed him in season 3, too.

With so much going on in season 3, the gang were side-tracked by more pressing issues (namely, Homelander and Soldier Boy). This allowed Neuman to infiltrate US Presidential candidate Robert Singer's – aka Dakota Bob – camp and become his running mate. You know, after Homelander forced The Deep to kill Singer's former Vice Presidential candidate Lamar Bishop.

In season 3's final scene, the titular gang learns she's seemingly in cahoots with Homelander, leading Billy to install Neuman as their next target. Expect Neuman to be one of the individuals that the group target in season 4's finale episode, aka 'Assassination Run'.

"I don't think it's much of a spoiler to say that we're definitely working towards a Dakota Bob presidency with Neuman as a secret Vought plant in the vice presidency, and all the complications that ensue from that," Kripke told GameSpot. "That obviously was probably Garth's [Ennis] biggest endgame story. Again, it's not a spoiler to say that. You've seen us maneuver the chess pieces into that place so we can start telling that story."

Billy and company don't just have the superpowered Kimiko at their disposal now, either. They could break out the imprisoned Gen V student Supes Marie, Jordan, and Emma – who were locked up in the spin-off's season 1 finale – and convince them to join their cause, especially after Homelander put them there. It seems Jeffrey Dean Morgan's mystery character wants to help Billy and company, too, based on what the trailers tease. Regardless of whether the young Supes join The Boys or not, Kripke has said (per Total Film) that audiences don't need to watch Gen V to understand what happens in The Boys season 4.

Elsewhere, Annie January/Starlight defected from the Seven to join the titular group in season 3's final episode. However, with Homelander killing one of her fans, Annie could find her loyalties to her fanbase and The Boys tested like never before. The escalating conflict between them was one of the most fascinating subplots in season 3, and we'll certainly see more of them lock horns again in season 4. She'll learn how to master her flying power, which she does in the comics, too, according to Kripke (per Variety).

And what of Soldier Boy? Following season 3's climactic battle, Ackles' nuclear-powered human weapon was put back on ice by the FBI. Unless Homelander or The Boys get truly desperate and need him to fight for their cause, we suspect that's where he'll stay.

There are plenty of storylines The Boys can adapt from Ennis and Robertson's graphic novel series in season 4, but we won't spoil anything else. We'll leave the last word for Kripke, who told Insider that fans shouldn't worry about the possibility of Homelander subversively winning the day in The Boys season 4 or the wider context of the series.

"The story's not over," he said. "I'll make a pledge to you right now that I will not end this series with Homelander winning. So, you can hold me to that."

Will The Boys return after season 4?

Yes. The Boys season 5 was announced in mid-May, which comes some time after Kripke committed to the fact that season 4 wouldn't be the show's final entry. Read our explainer article on The Boys season 4's ending for more details on how it sets up season 5.

As for how many more seasons there'll be, Kripke told Inverse (on May 28) that he wouldn't comment on when it might end. Those comments came over three years after he suggested The Boys would be done after five seasons.

Just two weeks later on June 11, however, Kripke took to X/Twitter (see above) to reveal that season 5 would be the show's last installment, adding: "[It was] 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."

As the X/Twitter post above also confirmed, Gen V season 2 is on the way. It'll follow on from The Boys season 4, so storylines in the main show will carry over into – and impact – the live-action spin-off. 

However, following the shock passing of Chance Perdomo, who played Andre in Gen V, in March, season 2's development was put on hold. Work has since restarted on the series' sophomore season, with a statement on the show's X/Twitter account (see below) confirming that key storylines will be rewritten in the wake of Perdomo's death. Andre won't be recast, either, as confirmed by Kripke (via TVLine).

Lastly, Seth Rogen, one of The Boys' executive producers, hopes Amazon will renew its animated spin-off – The Boys Presents: Diabolical, which debuted in March 2022 – for a second season. Speaking to Collider, Rogen confirmed Amazon had bought some scripts for a second season of the animated anthology series, but there's no word on if they'll be produced. Once we learn more, we'll update you.

For more Prime Video TV-based coverage, read our guides on The Rings of Power season 2, Fallout season 2, Invincible season 3, and Blade Runner 2099.