The Character Recasting In The Boys Season 2 That You Didn't Notice

Superhero show and movie recasting is so common that audiences barely blink their collective eyes anymore when it happens. Sometimes, Hollywood is kind enough to wait until a series or film trilogy is over before recasting. The Spider-Man franchise is the perfect example: Tobey Maguire plays the webslinger in Sam Raimi's trilogy, Andrew Garfield switches in for the Amazing duology, and Tom Holland is locked and loaded as the Marvel Cinematic Universe's iteration of the character.

Other times, the film industry waits for no one. Take the Iron Man franchise: Terrence Howard plays James "Rhodey" Rhodes/War Machine in Iron Man, but Don Cheadle has been in the role since Iron Man II. Cheadle is the face of War Machine to most Marvel fans because of his longevity, but back in 2010 when Iron Man II came out, those same fans were jarred by the sudden and unexpected replacement of Howard. 

The Boys, one of the most popular superhero properties on television, has largely and thankfully avoided recasting for the most part. It's truly a blessing for such a character-based story; having to adjust to a Homelander other than Antony Starr or a Billy Butcher other than Karl Urban would be nothing less than devastating. There was, however, one blink-and-you-miss-it recast between seasons 1 and 2. The character's existence alone is a spoiler, so be warned if you're not caught up on The Boys.

A lot happens at the end of season 1 of The Boys as long-time conflicts finally boil over, but the final scene is the part that really sticks for first-time watchers. Butcher wakes up on a lawn, Homelander prompting him to open his eyes as a boy and a woman appear. The woman is Butcher's wife Becca (Shantel VanSanten), long thought dead, and the boy is her son with Homelander. As Homelander reveals his identity as the father, the boy's eyes glow red — a telltale sign that he, too, has powers.

Credited as "8 Year Old Boy," this surprise reveal character is played by Parker Corno. All things told, the scene in which he appears lasts no more than two minutes, so the impression left has more to do with the fact that his character exists than Corno himself. Becca was thought to have died in childbirth because birthing Supe children wasn't thought possible; all Supes, the audience is led to believe up to that point, are injected with a power-granting substance called Compound V at a young age. The survival of the son of Homelander and Becca, then, defies previous convention.

Season 2 not only gives the boy a name — Ryan — but replaces Corno entirely with Cameron Crovetti. That the recast went mostly unnoticed is no fault of Corno's; he acquits himself as well as any actor could given so little screen time. The two don't even look that alike aside from their similar age and blond hair. The fact is, though, it really is a brief appearance, and again, it's more about the wow factor of Homelander having a son than anything else. Crovetti's much lengthier stint as Ryan is more about developing the character once the sense of shock has petered out.

No official reason was given for the recasting, but Crovetti does have significantly more acting experience than Corno, which could have something to do with it. Corno appears on The Boys, a YouTube Original series called Impulse, and ... nothing else. 

Crovetti, on the other hand, has shows like Big Little Lies and Dirty John under his belt. Fans of the HBO drama series will recognize Crovetti as Josh Wright, the young son of Nicole Kidman's Celeste and Alexander Skarsgård's Perry. Crovetti's twin brother, Nicholas, also starred on Big Little Lies, playing Max. On Dirty John, the true crime anthology created by Alexandra Cunningham, Crovetti stars as Ryan Broderick, the son of Betty (Amanda Peet) and Dan Broderick (Christian Slater).

Whatever the reason Crovetti became the new Ryan on The Boys, it is what it is, and Crovetti has more than proven his worth in the role. Here's to hoping Corno gets his own big break soon.