Multiverses are all the rage right now in superhero TV series and movies. From the MCU to the DCEU, it’s a veritable all you can eat buffet of parallel dimensions, alternate realities, and different takes on all our favourite superheroes and villains. Now, though, The Boys have got in on the action.
In a tongue in cheek tweet, which references Marvel’s animated series What If…?, the keen minds behind the hit show gave us a glimpse of a world where The Boys are supes. Kind-hearted Hughie (Jack Quaid) is the cruel Homelander, Frenchie (Tomer Kapon) is nobody’s favourite hero The Deep, Mother’s Milk (Laz Alonso) has slipped on A-Train’s speedy shoes, and Kimiko (Karen Fukuhara) is Queen Maeve.
Where is Billy Butcher (Karl Urban) in all this? Well, he’s filling in for The Watcher, of course. Although we’re not sure Uatu would approve of Billy’s take on his catchphrase, “Follow me, The F*cking Butcher, and ponder the question: What If?” The Boys has never been afraid to take jabs at Marvel Studios in the past.
The most notable barb came in the second season, where they mocked the scene in Avengers: Endgame where several female heroes join forces to protect Captain Marvel from Thanos. In The Boys version of this scene, the female heroes team up to beat a Nazi into a bloody pulp.
Follow me, The F*cking Butcher, and ponder the question: What If? pic.twitter.com/GFxM71eCqJ
— The Boys (@TheBoysTV) October 23, 2021
The Boys creator Eric Kripke admitted to The Hollywood Reporter that this was a criticism of Marvel. “A lot of that came from our executive producer, Rebecca Sonnenshine, who came in after the weekend Endgame opened,” he explained. “She was just furious. I saw it, too, and I was like, ‘That was the dumbest, most contrived—’ And she’s like, ‘Don’t get me started.’ She found it condescending, and I agreed.”
“So that just created for us a target, a satirical target,” he continued. “When there’s something really ridiculous in either superhero or celebrity or Hollywood culture, we’ll immediately go after it. It’s an easy shot.”
What If…? is available now on the streaming service Disney Plus while The Boys season 3 is due for release next year.