Whenever a season of Amazon Prime’s hit show The Boys comes to a close there are usually lingering questions, but fans are at least sated following yet another hilarious, biting, ultra-violent gore fest. This was very much the case after season three’s finale, a season in which they actually found a way to depict “Herogasm”, with that alone being indicative of how the show had once again found a way to out-do itself.
However, it’s not long before withdrawals start to set in and the fanbase clamours for any piece of information regarding casting or the storyline that is to be used in the upcoming season, but with the industry strike still ongoing there is no concrete release date set. While this is hardly ideal, fear not, as the show’s second spinoff series – with the first being the animated show The Boys Presents: Diabolical – Gen V is set to debut on September 29th, and going off the trailer alone, it is sure to fill the gaping void left by its mother show.
Largely filmed at the University of Toronto Mississauga campus, Gen V centres on superpowered young adults who attend the Godolkin University School of Crimefighting in order to become superheroes, otherwise known as “supes” in The Boys universe. The university, however, is run by Vought International, the villainous corporation of the original show responsible for creating superpowered beings by injecting young children with a serum called Compound V, which this spinoff references in its clever title. With Vought involved, there is sure to be more nefarious activity at play than meets the eye, and the central character will be Marie Moreau, played by Jaz Sinclair, who is a blood bender, meaning she has the ability to manipulate and shape blood, much like Magneto with metal in the X-Men franchise. In fact, the show even features its own metal bender in Chance Perdomo’s character Andre Anderson. They are supported by a number of other main cast members, each with their own intriguing abilities, including a mind empath played by Canada’s own Maddie Philips, and a gender-shifter portrayed by Derek Luh, amongst others. There are also some notable actors playing recurring roles in Gen V, such as Patrick Schwarzenegger, son of the Arnold, Jason Ritter, son of the late John Ritter, and Clancy Brown who is…well, the Clancy Brown!
While there is little known about the show outside of its general premise (episode titles have not even been revealed yet), there is certainly a lot to be excited about with Gen V, not just because it’s a spinoff of one of the best TV satires in recent years, but also because the show was co-created by The Boys creator Eric Kripke, and Evan Goldberg, who is Seth Rogen’s creative partner with both serving as executive producers on The Boys, and the same can be said for Gen-V. Steve Boyum, a director who has worked on the original show, will serve as a director on some episodes.
Talent coming over from The Boys won’t just be behind the camera either, as there are cast members listed to appear in guest roles that include Jessie T. Usher as A-Train, Chace Crawford as The Deep, Colby Minifie as Ashley, Claudia Doumit as Victoria Neuman and, perhaps most surprisingly, the excellent Jensen Ackles as the series’ fan-favourite douchebag, Soldier Boy.
