‘The Boys’ Showrunner Eric Kripke Opens Up About Building Homelander With Antony Starr

Eric Kripke’s collaboration with Antony Starr has been fundamental to shaping ‘The Boys’ most memorable character, Homelander, into one of television’s greatest antagonists. Starr worked directly with Kripke on the nuances of Homelander’s personality, describing their creative process as organic, with Kripke always remaining open to ideas, explaining the reasoning behind specific creative choices, and bouncing ideas back and forth with the actor. The partnership between showrunner and performer has resulted in a character that feels both terrifyingly complex and unexpectedly vulnerable.

Kripke described Starr as doing some of the best work on television, calling him an all-timer in terms of great antagonists who seriously attacks the character’s humanity, foibles, and psychology through an intensely collaborative approach that begins at the script stage.

What makes Kripke’s direction of Starr particularly effective is his appreciation for the actor’s fearlessness and willingness to throw himself into scenes without knowing exactly what Homelander will do, which in turn means the audience doesn’t know either, making the character genuinely unpredictable. This unpredictability has become one of the show’s defining elements.

Both men share an admission that they struggle with accepting compliments, though Kripke has been vocal about Starr being on television’s all-timer list of antagonists because he makes the character so real, complicated, and weirdly vulnerable at times.

The creative partnership operates on a philosophy where audiences don’t necessarily have to sympathize with Homelander, but they do have to empathize with his twisted psychology. This balance between monstrosity and humanity has proven to be the character’s greatest strength.

Starr has expressed his love for the collaboration with Kripke, calling it beautiful while working alongside super-creative and super-talented people, though he’s also committed to ensuring the show doesn’t overstay its welcome as it approaches its conclusion after five seasons.

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