Eric Kripke on How ‘The Boys’ Tackles and Dismantles “Toxic Masculinity”: “To see what a woman’s point of view in this world is, this sort of toxic, macho world.”

“The Boys,” one of the world’s most popular superhero series, premiered its fourth season on June 13, 2024, with the first three episodes. While the season has been Certified Fresh, fan reactions have been mixed.

This season introduces new concepts, including an increase in political messages, which has received a varied response from the audience. In a recent interview, showrunner Eric Kripke addressed these political themes in Season 4. Known for his occasional social media interactions and insightful interviews, Kripke’s comments provide intriguing insights into the show’s direction.

In a conversation with Variety, Kripke discussed various topics, including how the story addresses masculinity and women’s rights. He believes the series effectively dismantles the concept of “toxic masculinity,” depicting it as vile and unnecessary, particularly in relation to the popular “bad fan” theory.

“The Boys” is a show that examines, and very much damns, toxic masculinity. There’s a theory of the “bad fan” — people who root for villains just because they like the bad things that they do. Do you ever think about The Boys’ fandom and wonder about the ratio of bad fans?

I have to believe that the “bad fans” are a very small minority. Because I don’t know how you root for Homelander. When the guy is slurping up breast milk, and being the weakest character in the show over and over and over again and being like — he’s not even particularly macho. He’s weird. He’s weird and thin-skinned, and I don’t know how you look at that guy and you’re like, “That’s my guy.”

The show’s not subtle. It wears its politics on its sleeve. And it’s funny to rip on the madness on the right, and we get some shots in on the left of all the performative wokeness and everything. So I’m hoping that that’s the vast majority?

He also noted how the series shifted the perspective of the characters, bringing the female characters into the spotlight, a change from their portrayal in the comics.

The point of view in the “The Boys” comic books is pretty geared toward the male characters. And from the very beginning, the women on The Boys have been really full, in-depth characters. Was that something you came into the series saying you were going to?

Yeah, very much so. I mean, the comic is, as you say, very, very male oriented. And I mean, part of it just comes from the practical considerations of, hey, I want a really big tent, and I don’t want to do some edgelord thing. I don’t want to make edgelord material for incels, or whatever. I want something for everybody. And so I was like, we really need to muscle up the female characters.

It worked, and it gave us a fresher perspective to see what a woman’s point of view in this world is, this sort of toxic, macho world. So then we just kept doing more of it. Also, the pilot begins with a sexual assault.

That’s right.

And it’s handled a little glibly in the comic. And we always said, well, if we’re going to handle it, we have to really be responsible, and dive into it.

What do you think of Kripke’s statements about Season 4 of “The Boys” and the series as a whole? Do you think he’s going too far, or is he on the right track? Share your thoughts in the comments below!

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