Eric Kripke Discusses the Impact of the Firecracker/Homelander Scene from Episode 6

The Boys stands out as one of the world’s most popular superhero series. Since June 13, 2024, its fourth season has been airing, drawing closer to its finale. With a Certified Fresh rating and high viewership, Amazon has noted a surge in audience numbers.

However, despite its success, some fans are review-bombing the season due to its heightened political undertones. Among the season’s elements is the introduction of Firecracker, a new supervillain portrayed by Valorie Curry, who plays a significant role. Firecracker gained attention after a peculiar encounter with Homelander in Episode 6.

We’ve previously shared Curry’s perspective on the scene, but showrunner Eric Kripke also addressed it in an interview with Variety, providing additional context about the scene.

Kripke spoke with Variety, addressing various aspects of the show and recent developments from Episode 6, notably discussing the controversial breastfeeding scene involving Firecracker and Homelander, which sparked both shock and intrigue among fans. Here is his take:

Where did the idea for Firecracker breastfeeding Homelander come from? We know his milk fetish, we know his mommy fetish. But the choice actually to take it to this level on screen and get Antony Starr and Valorie Curry comfortable with that…

No, of course, Ant and Val were like, “Let’s do it!” I think I remember telling Val on Day 1 of seeing her in Toronto, “Just so we’re clear, Firecracker is going to be breastfeeding him.” And I believe her response was something to the effect of like, “Well, of course she is.” When you take that character and how slavishly devoted she is to Homelander, and how she would do anything for him — as she’s made abundantly clear by saying it like seven times in a row to him — that giving him the thing he wants most in the world becomes logical, in a bananas sort of way.

As we were saying in the room, because she’s also jockeying to get in a better position as a way to sell out Sage, they’re now competing for Homelander’s attention. So the conversation in the room came up that Sage is great at what people might need intellectually, but Firecracker is really amazing at what people need emotionally. And we said, “Well, what is the thing Homelander needs most in the world that no one else could give them?” And it’s a hop, skip and a jump to, “Well, he would need a woman who’s actually willing to let him breastfeed.” And I remember distinctly, Ellie Monahan in the room said, “If we’re doing that, that’s the craziest thing we’ve ever done.” And it’s close, man.

That scene, first of all, getting the milk squirted into his face, and Ant’s shock and total delight is such a beautiful moment. But any other sane show would cut away at that point. And by the way, not that sane — but that’s when you cut away, you know what’s gonna happen.

The fact that we cut to the actual breastfeeding scene makes me cover my mouth every time. It’s just so stunning, and wow. Just what it means to the characters — the actors’ balls in pulling that off. I mean, it’s just my chef’s kiss to all of them.

And the medicine that does that only enlarges her heart a little bit!

Just a tiny little bit.

Source: Variety

As evident, there’s an intriguing background behind the conception and filming of this scene. Previously, we reported Valorie Curry’s confirmation that the scene was smoothly filmed without any hitches. Another notable aspect is Kripke’s confirmation that the medication Firecracker takes enlarges her heart, potentially foreshadowing her fate later in the series.

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