The Boys fans confused over “racist” Butcher allegations

As we gear up for Billy Butcher’s return in The Boys Season 4, the foul-mouthed anti-hero has faced “racist” allegations, leaving many of the show’s fans feeling confused. 

If there’s one thing we know about Butcher (Karl Urban), it’s that he hates Homelander, he hates Vought, and, ultimately, he hates Supes. He’s in a rather precarious position in The Boys Season 4 after his brief but deadly affair with Temp V.

As theories about the next chapter circulate, one Redditor looked to Butcher’s past — more specifically, his Season 3 killing of Payback’s Gunpowder (Sean Patrick Flanery). It’s this fact that they think suggests he’s “racist.”

“Butcher really didn’t have to kill Gunpowder, makes me think he’s some kinda racist,” they wrote, while others have corrected their post to say he’s “supeist.”

“Man spits the most supecist sh*t imaginable, proceeds to have hot steamy stinky sex with the baddest supe in the show,” said another, referring to his hook-up with Queen Maeve (Dominique McElligott).

Another pointed to all of the “supeist” comments he’s made across the three seasons of The Boys so far, including, “Supes are all the same. Every f**king one of them,” “He’s a little Supe freak,” and “Tomorrow I’ll be sober, and you’ll still be a Supe.”

These comments are all totally valid, but the reason they’re sparking confusion is due to the fact that they’re common knowledge. 

“Where have you been? Of course Butcher is biased against Supes. Butcher sees the Superheroes as essentially living weapons,” pointed out one fan. 

“He’s seen the consequences they can cause on a micro-scale; knowing the reality on a macro scale. This is without even mentioning being slighted by one, in the form of Homelander.”

Another pointed to a previous post in The Boys’ subreddit highlighting Homelander’s (Antony Starr) crimes. “First we had a post about someone not understanding Homelander is a murderer, now we have someone calling Butcher racist. Is this subreddit okay…?” they said. 

Others made ‘the sky is blue’ quips in response, from “Guys, it’s called ‘The Boys’ and yet one of them is distinctly female,” to “You know what? I’m starting to notice that some of the people on this show aren’t very nice.”

What isn’t so obvious about Butcher’s arc is whether he’ll have to become the very thing he hates in order to save himself. 

“I think that’s the whole point is that they’re setting him up to have to take Compound V to survive and become what he hates the most. A Supe,” said one Reddit. “He’s definitely a bigot against them, and he gets to become one.”

We’ll get to find out whether this is the case soon, as The Boys Season 4 premieres on June 13, 2024. Until then, read about all of the new Supes in The Boys’ next chapter, find out about Black Noir’s involvement, and take a look at whether Mother’s Milk has been recast for Season 4. You can also find all of the new TV shows heading to streaming this month.