Amazon Prime’s The Boys has played host to some of the most malevolently ruthless characters in television history. The satirical offering features a number of individuals so devoid of morality that they make the cast of Game of Thrones resemble the Teletubbies.
From invincible superheroes to ruthless corporate kingpins, The Boys is renowned for its compelling, unforgiving characters. While several of them may possess an inkling of good hidden behind their depravity, large portions of Eric Kripke’s cast are beyond irredeemable. In the case of Compound V-powered superhumans, this is a terrifying combination. It’s a recipe for a trail of bloody human wreckage left in their remorseless wake.
8 Frenchie
A Tormented Former Contract Killer
- First appearance: Season 1, Episode 2, “Cherry”
Better known as “Frenchie,” Tomer Capone’s charge, Serge, is one of The Boys’ most layered characters. A fan favorite, the enigmatic career criminal doesn’t initially present as a candidate for the show’s most ruthless face. Fiercely loyal to his friends, Frenchie’s uniquely intimate bond with Kimiko is one of The Boys most heartwarming narrative threads.
However, that wasn’t always the case. Serge was once a prolific hit man, carrying out assassinations on behalf of criminal underworld figures in the vein of Little Nina. Frenchie’s ruthlessness even extended to murdering entire families in their home. Season 4 has revealed that the PTSD-racked Serge killed his new love interest Colin’s entire family, as the latter hid in terror beneath his bed.
7 Madelyn Stillwell
Vought’s Senior VP Of Hero Management
- First appearance: Season 1, Episode 1, “The Name of the Game”
Ultimately, her cutthroat nature did little to prevent Homelander from melting a large hole in her face. However, it speaks volumes that Madelyn Stillwell still holds a reputation as one of the show’s most ruthless names, despite bowing out in Season 1. Elisabeth Shue’s character possessed no superpowers of her own, but she proved time and again that she didn’t require them to be one of the most dangerous individuals on The Boys.
As the manager of the most powerful group of superheros on the planet, Stillwell was unstoppable in the pursuit of her goals. She used Doppelgänger to blackmail a prominent Senator. She took advantage of a plane crash caused by Homelander to push her militarized superhero agenda. Madelyn was the corporate equivalent of a Bengal tiger.
6 Victoria Neuman
A Mind-Blowing Machiavellian Politician
- First appearance: Season 2, Episode 1, “The Big Ride”
A superpowered wolf in sheep’s clothing, Victoria Neuman was initially portrayed as a sympathetic character. Unfortunately for the Boys, the founding director of the Federal Bureau of Superhuman Affairs is later unmasked as a terrifying supe. The notorious “Head Popper” turned Congress into a massacre that would make Freddy Krueger wince.
Victoria is relentless in her political ambitions, a status quo that extended to betraying her adopted father Stan Edgar. The vice president-elect’s moralistic shortcomings are further underlined when she injects her young daughter Zoe with Compound V during Season 3. She dismisses her daughter’s agony as a necessary evil to protect her from harm.
5 Stan Edgar
Vought’s Merciless Former CEO
- First appearance: Season 1, Episode 8, “You Found Me”
The head honcho at Vought for years, the endlessly calculating Stan Edgar’s entire life is a testament to his unrelenting nature. Played by Giancarlo Esposito, this dispassionate figure rose through the ranks to become the most powerful individual at the most influential company on the planet. He is now capable of bringing even the mighty Homelander to heel.
Edgar was never afraid of making an unethical decision as long as it proved profitable. Look no further than the company meeting discussing the potential civilian casualty rate posed by superheroes in the military during Season 2’s “The Big Ride.” He tops off his cutthroat persona by cunningly removing himself from any semblance of risk in his nefarious dealings. Edgar disappears from harm’s way just before the massacre in Nicaragua. The former Vought kingpin also refuses to sit down with Billy Butcher without several snipers trained on the Boys’ leader first.
4 Stormfront
A Lightning-Charged Hatemonger
- First appearance: Season 2, Episode 1, “The Big Ride”
The acid-tongued Stormfront emitted ominous vibes long before she dispatched Kimiko’s long-lost brother Kenji in one of The Boys’ most sadistic kill sequences. That’s somewhat unsurprising, given Homelander’s arrogant former love interest’s backstory. Aya Cash’s Compound V-powered character was actually a century-old Nazi and the former wife of Frederick Vought.
Despite espousing far-right political ideologies, Stormfront defused her hateful personality in the public’s eyes by putting up a polished, well-spoken facade. It was a good way to distract attention from a litany of racially motivated murders. She didn’t limit her pitiless disposition to acts of violence and bigotry either. The racist superhero clearly relished seizing Ryan Butcher from his horrified mother Rebecca.
3 Soldier Boy
A Radioactive Maniac
- First appearance: Season 3, Episode 4, “Glorious Five-Year Plan”
Long before the Russians turned him into a walking nuclear reactor, Soldier Boy possessed a merciless disposition that rivaled that of his “son” Homelander. Payback’s former leader operated under a charismatic facade of patriotic machismo, but this proved to be a cover for his sadistic personality.
Jensen Ackles’ shield-wielding superhero tormented his teammates to the point that they mutinied against him. He tortured his young sidekick Gunpowder with frequent beatings, and reduced Black Noir to a deformed and brain-damaged mute during Operation Charly. That’s not to mention hunting down and murdering the remaining Payback members after finally escaping Russian captivity. Soldier Boy even rejects Homelander’s desperate pleas for him to take on the role of his father, dismissing his own son as no more than a “weak, sniveling p****.”
2 Billy Butcher
The Boys’ Iconic Anti-Hero
- First appearance: Season 1, Episode 1, “The Name of the Game”
While there is undoubtedly good hidden behind his ultra-violent, foulmouthed exterior, Billy Butcher has a ruthless streak a mile wide. Karl Urban’s enigmatic character is merciless towards anybody who crosses his path. Whether he’s using a V’d up baby to blast a roomful of guards into oblivion or caving Mesmer’s skull in with the aid of a bathroom sink, anybody unlucky enough to get in his way usually ends up as a puddle of gore.
The Boys’ leader lends new meaning to the phrase “scorched earth” in the aftermath of losing his beloved wife to Homelander. Butcher is willing to let the world burn if it means that every superhero burns with it. Billy quite literally gave his own life in pursuit of his agenda. He betrayed every principle he holds by using Temp V just to level the playing field against his superpowered adversaries, despite being aware of the fact that it likely meant a horrible death for himself.
1 Homelander
Superman Meets Joffrey Baratheon
- First appearance: Season 1, Episode 1, “The Name of the Game”
A generational supervillain, Antony Starr’s Homelander isn’t just the most ruthless individual on The Boys. He’s arguably a front-runner for the most merciless antagonist in television history. Homelander is one of the cruelest characters ever to make their bow onscreen. Anthony Starr’s character is a terrifying blend of insecurity, narcissism and impetuousness housed in a virtually omnipotent being with sadistic proclivities.
He’s ordered a young girl to take her own life, crippled a blind candidate for the Seven, and abandoned a plane full of people to their deaths, to name but a few. The facto head of Vought has demonstrated his barbarous nature time and time again. There’s no moral low he won’t stoop to, and no boundary of decency he won’t cross. It’s hard to imagine a sociopathic villain that will ever come close to the dizzying heights of Homelander.
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