The Homelander (John) is a character in the adult superhero comic book series The Boys created by Garth Ennis and Darick Robertson. The Homelander is the psychopathic, narcissistic, and extremely powerful leader of The Seven—the world's premier and secretly hedonistic team of superheroes (referred to as "Supes") bred and funded by the multi-billion dollar conglomerate Vought-American. Beneath his public image as a noble hero, the Homelander recklessly abuses his powers for personal gain and cares little about the well-being of those he professes to protect. He has been described as a personification of negative perceptions of the United States. Regarded as a satirical parody of the DC Comics character Superman and/or Marvel Comics character Captain America by media outlets, the Homelander's powers include superhuman strength, speed, flight, X-ray and heat vision, and invulnerability. He serves as the archenemy of Billy Butcher, the leader of "The Boys", a team of CIA-sponsored vigilantes dedicated to opposing corrupt Supes.
In the Amazon Prime Video television adaptation of the same name developed by Eric Kripke, the character, simply known as Homelander, is portrayed by Antony Starr. This version is the megalomaniacal son of Soldier Boy and the father of Ryan Butcher, born as a result of Homelander raping Billy Butcher's wife Becca (a crime committed by Black Noir in the comics). Kripke has stated that he views the series' version of Homelander as a metaphor for U.S. president Donald Trump. Starr has reprised his role as the character in both spin-off instalments of the franchise, including The Boys Presents: Diabolical and Gen V, and outside media such as Death Battle!. Starr's performance has received acclaim from critics.
Contents
Development
The character was created by Garth Ennis and Darick Robertson. Media outlets regard him as a parody of Superman and/or Captain America. Per Robertson, they were making fun of superhero archetypes more than individual characters and for Homelander, their target of critique was the archetype of the "white patriotic-themed leader."
Homelander's backstory in the original comics is similar to that in the television adaptation.
Ennis describes Homelander as: "an almost entirely negative character. He is really just a series of unpleasant urges kept in check by his own intelligence, which is enough to understand that he can have anything he wants so long as he doesn't push his luck too far." Also: "It might help to think of the Homelander as having all the self control of let's say a fourteen year old."
Appearances
Comic book series
Homelander is a patriotic superhero who leads the superhero team The Seven. He is the most powerful superhuman created by Vought-American (VA). The company's cover story for Homelander is that he is an alien who landed in the United States as an infant, much like Superman. In reality, he and the rest of the original roster of the Seven were grown in a secret laboratory, the progeny of genetic material taken from Stormfront, who was injected with Compound V while he was a member of the Hitler Youth. His mother was a mentally disabled woman who died giving birth to him. Upon his birth, he killed the medical personnel. Homelander spent most of his young life chained down with a hydrogen bomb strapped to him in case he tried to escape. In #21, Homelander and the Seven botched the rescue during the 9/11 plane terrorist attack, causing the deaths of numerous people and Mister Marathon. Homelander remains under the financial thumb of VA, as their money funds the Seven's hedonistic lifestyle. Homelander eventually tries to encourage the other superheroes to do what they want, but relents due to his fear of his boss The Guy from Vought.
Homelander, along with Black Noir and A-Train, sexually assaults the newest recruit Starlight to prove that she is a member of the Seven. Until the events of the series' climax, Billy Butcher is tricked into thinking Homelander had raped his wife Becca, who then died giving birth to a superhuman baby Butcher had then killed. In issue #40, the Boys receive a series of incriminating doctored photos seemingly showing Homelander engaging in acts of murder, cannibalism, and necrophilia against men, women, and children. In private, Homelander shows signs of a mental breakdown, talking to his own reflection in a mirror, and having bouts of nausea. He eventually decides that he is responsible anyway for the acts depicted in the photos, and decides to give in to any intrusive thoughts that cross his mind.
In Herogasm, Homelander leads the Supes away into an orgy, while officially claiming to be combatting an intergalactic threat. Soldier Boy is manipulated by Homelander into having sexual intercourse with him, thinking it would make him a member of the Seven. From Herogasm onward, Homelander resolves to free himself and the superhero community from Vought-American's control. In Over the Hill with the Swords of a Thousand Men, he leads the other superheroes in a coup d'etat against the United States, launching an attack on the White House and killing everyone inside, including the president. During the subsequent confrontation between Homelander and Butcher, the masked Black Noir arrives in the Oval Office and reveals himself as a clone of Homelander (the first of the Seven grown after him), created solely to kill Homelander if he ever went rogue. Gradually driven insane due to not being allowed to kill Homelander, Noir reveals he committed the atrocities in the photos, including raping Butcher's wife, to trick the initially good Homelander so that Noir would finally be allowed to fulfill his purpose. Outraged, Homelander attacks Black Noir. Black Noir and Homelander brutalize each other as Butcher flees, due to Homelander's lasers destroying the room. A badly wounded Noir emerges from the White House holding only a section of Homelander's arm and ribs, having torn him apart with his bare hands. Butcher then orders the waiting Marines to open fire, bringing Noir to his knees, before killing him by beating his head open with a crowbar and crushing his prefrontal cortex with his hands.
Television series
In the television adaptation, Antony Starr plays Homelander as an adult, with Rowan Smyth playing him as a child in the first season, and Isaac Weeks playing him as a child in the fourth season. As leader of the Seven, Homelander is viewed by the general public as an affable, sincere and acclaimed superhero and a modern icon of America; however, having been poorly raised in a laboratory environment by Vought scientist Jonah Vogelbaum, he is in fact a sociopathic narcissist who is openly contemptuous of both humans and Supes that he considers "lesser" beings. He is also highly self-righteous, nihilistic, hedonistic, delusional, possessive, paranoid, vindictive, insecure, insensitive, racist, hypocritical, reckless with his powers, and incapable of accepting the possibility of any flaw in his person or decision-making. Kripke regards the character as analogous to Donald Trump.
In 2011, eight years before the events of season one, Homelander rapes Billy Butcher's wife Becca after she is assigned as his assistant; however, he lets her live and, unbeknownst to him, she gives birth to a son named Ryan. Assigned by Vought International Vice President Madelyn Stillwell, Homelander and Queen Maeve have a botched rescue attempt of the hijacked Transoceanic Flight 37, but both end up abandoning the passengers due to Homelander's refusal to rescue them. His discovery of the lies surrounding his son's existence influences his decision to maim his creator and surrogate father Jonah Vogelbaum and murder his pseudo-mother figure and Vought executive Madelyn Stillwell. However, his emotional ineptitude and sociopathic traits initially alienate him from his son, and the loss of Stillwell's moderating influence on his behavior unbalances him further. He enters a romantic relationship with Stormfront despite being initially threatened by her popularity on social media and power, and conspires with her to remove his son from Becca's care and turn the public against "supervillains", hoping to create public outcry for an increase of superheroes and for their induction into the United States Armed Forces. However, during Butcher's rescue attempt of Ryan and Becca, Stormfront is maimed by Ryan after attacking Becca. Maeve blackmails Homelander with footage from Transoceanic Flight 37 into letting Butcher and Ryan go, and leaving her and Elena alone.
In a series of television interviews, he is forced to denounce his relationship with Stormfront due to her being revealed as a Nazi to the public and apologize for his actions. Partly to moderate Homelander's behavior, CEO Stan Edgar and Vought's board of directors install Starlight as co-captain of the Seven. However, after learning that Stormfront has committed suicide, Homelander becomes even more unstable and lashes out in a spiteful rant during his televised birthday celebration, claiming he is the world's savior. This skyrockets his approval rating with rural white males. To remove Edgar, Homelander bribes his adoptive daughter Victoria Neuman into opening an investigation into him (ousting him from Vought on corruption allegations) with Homelander assuming control of the company himself. Before leaving, Edgar chastises Homelander and warns that he will not be there to clean up his messes. He appoints Ashley Barrett as his puppet ruler and antagonizes Starlight by reinstating the Deep, who had sexually assaulted her in season one, as a member of the Seven, and falsely announcing that he is in a relationship with her during the finale of American Hero.
Web series
In the following 2020–2021 promotional web series, Seven on 7 with Cameron Coleman, which bridges the events of the second and third seasons, Homelander continues dealing with the aftermath of Stormfront being revealed to be a Nazi, as well as filming promos for Vought's streaming service, Vought+, and to celebrate Christmas.
In the 2020 Amazon Prime Video-sponsored The Boys promotional episodes of Death Battle!, in promotion for its second season, Homelander (voiced by Yong Yea) participates in the Seven's simulated battle royale, declaring himself the winner after killing Billy Butcher (standing-in for Black Noir), before throwing aside the laser baby to fight Stormfront, a consequence of which Wiz and Boomstick are uneasy of.
In a 2022 episode, Homelander is pitted against Nolan Grayson / Omni-Man (from Invincible). Through a simulated battle, the hosts determined Omni-Man's superior strength, skill, and experience would prevail against Homelander if the two fought to the death.
In The Boys Presents: Diabolical, Starr reprises his role as Homelander from the live-action series. Homelander first appears in the final moments of the episode "An Animated Short Where Pissed-Off Supes Kill Their Parents", executing the title characters (escaped Supe teenagers with abnormal powers from the Red River Assisted Living for the Gifted Child) with his heat vision on Vought's behalf, after they kill their parents due to the events of The Boys episode "Over the Hill with the Swords of a Thousand Men". Ghost was the only survivor of the attack. Vought covered up all the deaths that were caused where one news report states that Homelander saved Ghost's mother from a "natural gas explosion" that took the life of Ghost's dad.
Homelander next appears in the episode "I'm Your Pusher", set in the same continuity as The Boys comic book series while honoring Great Wide Wonder during a promotional campaign, despite very visibly and secretly noticing that the Great Wide Wonder is unwell after hearing his erradic heartbeat. Homelander witnesses his drug overdose (induced by Billy Butcher) lead him to crash into Ironcast during a stunt, killing them both. In order to cover up what happened, Homelander, Queen Maeve, and Jack from Jupiter blame a "Cold War satellite" controlled by the evil Galaxius for their deaths claiming it is "hidden in the light of the Sun" which the watching crowd eagerly believed as they flew away.
Powers and abilities
In both the television series and comic books, his powers include the ability to fly, invulnerability, superhuman strength, super hearing, x-ray vision, and laser vision. In the comics, he also can do a sonic scream, which can be fatal for people within range. According to TheWrap, he is much stronger than anyone else in The Boys universe, based on the television series.
His powers in the television series also consist of superhuman durability, speed, hearing and smell. Homelander cannot see through zinc, and he ages like a normal human. In season 5, it is revealed that his powers can be temporarily neutralized by the radiation of enriched uranium.
In other media
Video games
Homelander appears in Call of Duty: Modern Warfare II as a purchaseable operator in multiplayer modes, voiced by Antony Starr.
Homelander, based on Antony Starr's likeness, appears in Mortal Kombat 1 via the "Kombat Pack" DLC, voiced by Jake Green. In his arcade mode ending, Homelander starts to lay waste to America until a portal from the Mortal Kombat universe opens and a demon horde emerges from it. After destroying them and regaining public favor, he travels through the portal to take part in the Mortal Kombat tournament.
Homelander was introduced into Mortal Kombat Mobile in 2025 as a collectible character.
A cosmetic outfit based on Homelander is available for the operator Ace in Tom Clancy's Rainbow Six Siege. The bundle was released in March 2025.
Homelander appears in the VR video game The Boys: Trigger Warning, with Jake Green reprising his voice role.
Music
Metro Boomin samples a section of Homelander's speech from the third season episode "The Only Man in the Sky" in his track "On Time" from his 2022 album Heroes & Villains.
Homelander makes a cameo appearance in the music video for "Roll Out the Fallout!", a song performed by the Chalkeaters feat. Black Gryph0n & Benny Benack III.
In politics
In November 2020, a person attending the Million MAGA March in Washington, D.C. wore a Homelander costume (with a Donald Trump cutout covering the face) mock arresting another person with a Joe Biden cutout over the face. The act was criticized by Kripke, Starr and Robertson.
During the 2024 Jordanian general election, fake election posters depicting Starr as Homelander, edited to resemble a politician were put up across the country, said posters went viral on social media.
Reception
Media outlets regard Homelander as one of television's best villains. MovieWeb and FandomWire ranked him among the best characters of The Boys. Per SlashFilm: "Homelander was a boring, one-note psychopath in the comics, but the show has turned him into one of the most fascinating TV villains of all time." Screen Rant ranked him among the best characters in the comics in 2024.
Critics praised Starr's performance. Starr and Kripke criticized fans who glorified the character.