Showrunner Confirms Republican Conspiracy Theorist Marjorie Taylor Greene Inspired ‘The Boys’ Character Firecracker
“The Boys,” one of the world’s most popular superhero series, premiered its fourth season on June 13, 2024, with the first three episodes. Initial reactions were lukewarm, but the series has gained momentum and is now Certified Fresh with high ratings. Fans are excited about what’s to come, especially with the introduction of a new supe called Firecracker, played by Valorie Curry. Firecracker is set to be a major antagonist this season, and showrunner Eric Kripke has revealed the character’s controversial inspiration, which might not sit well with all fans.
Kripke, known for his occasional social media reactions, has also shared extensive background information in recent interviews, making his insights into the show particularly intriguing.
In a conversation with Variety, Kripke unveiled the inspirations behind Sister Sage and Firecracker, two new supes introduced in Season 4. One of these inspirations is particularly intriguing.
Introducing brand-new supes to the Seven — Sister Sage and Firecracker. How did you create those specific characters?
Sage came out of the conversation of one weakness that Homelander really has is he’s generally surrounded by idiots. And so if we gave him someone truly brilliant, that makes him much more formidable. It turns out that that’s a really hard character to write!
Oh really?
It’s really hard to write the smartest person in the world! Because you have to write things that the smartest person in the world would think of and we’re not the smartest people in the world, so that’s really difficult. And then Sage became a really interesting character, because someone came up with the notion of, “Let’s make her an African American woman who nobody listens to.” And so here she is, the ability to save all of mankind and everyone just kind of thinks she’s invisible, which I thought was a super interesting social commentary on top of that character. And then Susan brings it to life, and is just so smart.
Firecracker came from like, “Hey, isn’t Marjorie Taylor Greene scary?” And just that type of personality. Like, you had Trump, but now you have these Trump spawn that are trying to outdo each other for how outrageous and sexualized and gun-toting and slavishly obedient they can be. And just that idea — it wouldn’t just start and end with Homelander, he would start to create these spores that would grow into these other characters, and she’s a version of that.
Marjorie Taylor Greene, often referred to as MTG, is an American far-right politician and conspiracy theorist who has served as the U.S. representative for Georgia’s 14th congressional district since 2021. A member of the Republican Party, she identifies as a Christian nationalist and is a staunch supporter of Donald Trump.
Greene has espoused antisemitic and white supremacist views, and has promoted conspiracy theories including QAnon, Pizzagate, and the notion that the 9/11 attacks were staged. She has also advocated for executing prominent Democratic Party figures like Hillary Clinton and Barack Obama, likened COVID-19 safety measures to Holocaust-era persecution of Jews, and voiced support for Vladimir Putin and the Russian invasion of Ukraine.
This gives you a glimpse into the type of individual MTG is, which offers insight into the character Firecracker will embody in The Boys, known for its satirical exaggeration of real-world political dynamics.
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