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

Listen up, punks: The Boys season 4 is almost here. That’s right, the hit R-rated Prime Video series returns to our screens in June, so it’s time for you to get the lowdown on everything we know about it so far.

To that end, we’ve put together a diabolically great article on The Boys‘ next season on one of the world’s best streaming services. In this guide, you’ll find out more about its official release date, confirmed cast, plot details, trailers, and the show’s future. Oh, and how events depicted in one of the best Prime Video shows‘ fourth season will set up storylines for college-based spin-off Gen V, which will return for season 2.

Full spoilers follow for The Boys season 3 and Gen V‘s debut season. Potential spoilers are also on the way for season 4 of Amazon’s hit live-action superhero show.

The Boys season 4 release date

The Boys season 4 will officially launch on Friday, June 13. Until late February, we only knew that The Boys season 4 was set to punch its way onto Prime Video in 2024. That announcement was made 18 months after Amazon confirmed it had renewed The Boys for a fourth season.

With its release date fast approaching, it’s good to know that production has fully wrapped on the show’s next installment (as confirmed by showrunner Eric Kripke on X/Twitter).

As far are its release schedule goes, The Boys season 4 will debut with a three-episode premiere on June 13. New episodes will air weekly until the season finale on July 18.

The Boys season 4 trailers

The Boys season 4’s official trailer was released online on May 4, and it revealed more ties to spin-off show Gen V, Supe-d up farm animals, and a battle for America’s soul. Yeah, things are looking much more serious (even though there’s plenty of R-rated hilarity) this time around.

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 cast: confirmed and rumored

Major spoilers follow for The Boys season 3.

Here’s the confirmed cast for The Boys season 4 so far:

• 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
• Simon Pegg as Hugh Campbell Sr
• Valorie Curry as Firecracker
• Susan Heyward as Sister Sage
• Jeffrey Dean Morgan as TBA

Of the above, the first 11 actors – all of whom appeared in seasons one, two, and three – are back as their respective characters.

The only curious inclusion among them is Mitchell, whose superpowered individual Black Noir was killed 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.

Doumit is also back as Neuman, who – as revealed in season 3’s final entry – has been installed as Robert Singer’s running mate for the next US election. She’ll play a prominent role in season 4, too, given her all-important cameo appearance in Gen V season 1 (more on that later). Both trailers confirmed her daughter Zoe (Olivia Morandin) will also appear. Additionally, Crovetti, who periodically featured in seasons 2 and 3, has also been bumped to series regular (per The Boys‘ official Instagram account) and Simon Pegg will cameo again as Hughie’s dad.

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 new members of the Seven, the world’s number one superhero team led by Starr’s Homelander. Neither character exists in Garth Ennis and Darick Robertson’s graphic novel series, which the show is based on. Based on the footage we’ve seen so far, though, they’re another power-hungry duo who’ll stop at nothing to maintain the Seven’s dominance.

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. We catch glimpses of him in both trailers, but there’s no word on who he’s playing yet. Rosemarie DeWitt (La La Land, Stand-Off) has also been hired to play Hughie’s mom – again, her actual identity is a mystery.

For those hoping to see Jensen Ackles’ Soldier Boy again, we aren’t sure he’ll be back (more on why in the next section). The former Supernatural star is eager to reprise the role of Homelander’s dad and human-based weapon of mass destruction, though. After his dream-based cameo appearance in Gen V, we’re desperate to see Ackles’ fan-favorite character return.

Gen V‘s Cate and Sam will appear, too. The pair were invited to Vought’s headquarters in that show’s season 1 finale, but you’ll need to read our Gen V season 1 ending explained article for more details on why they have been. Lastly, Kripke has already teased Tek Knight’s possible involvement in the main show’s next installment – he 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, Jessie T. 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, the Seven’s deranged leader, taking Ryan – his superpowered son – under his maniacal 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, is likely to 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 autocractically 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 currently comprises himself, The Deep, and A-Train (even if the latter duo has started to see through Homelander’s charade). With Sister Sage and Firecracker joining the line-up alongside Black Noir 2.0, the superhero team is nearly back to full strength.

Homelander has some issues to contend with, though. Gen V season 1 revealed he’ll be forced to 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 steal it and use it to wipe out every Supe on the planet. Well, as long as he can find a way to keep Ryan safe from its effects (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.

Annie January/Starlight (Erin Moriarty), who defected from the Seven and officially joined the group in season 3’s finale, is on The Boys’ side as well but, 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 Homelander and Starlight was one of the most fascinating subplots in The Boys 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?

The Boys hasn’t been renewed for a fifth season yet, but Kripke has confirmed that its fourth season won’t be the show’s final entry. As long as The Boys continues to be popular (which it will, in our opinion), more seasons will be on the way.

As the X/Twitter post above revealed, Gen V is returning for a second season, too. Its sophomore outing will directly 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, development on season 2 has been put on hold. A statement posted on Gen V‘s X/Twitter account (see above) confirmed that key storylines will be rewritten to account for the tragic news ahead of production starting back up in May. Andre won’t be recast, either, in honor of Perdomo’s season 1 performance.

Elsewhere, 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 about these spin-off projects’ next installments, we’ll let you know what’s going on.

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.