The Billy Butcher Theory That Changes Everything On The Boys

With the success of Amazon's shows "The Boys" and "Invincible," the superhero genre has taken an interesting turn. Both shows are based on highly successful comic books and both challenge the current pop culture surrounding superhero franchises. In particular, "The Boys" posits a world where superheroes are privatized and looks at the consequences of companies in control of these so-called heroes.

Homelander, the leader of The Seven, is particularly brutal. He is responsible for constant suffering and ultimately a superhero conspiracy. Season 2 of "The Boys" brings on an even more vicious villain in the form of Stormfront. As many crimes as the Supes commit, there is a theory that may turn these archetypes on its head. Hughie continues to be the shining light of morality in the show. He has killed and lied, but for the right reasons. However, there is another character that may quickly be rising in the ranks to challenge Homelander as the true villain of the series.

Billy Butcher recruits Hughie to join his gang of Supe fighters, but the longer Hughie fights alongside him, the more red flags make themselves known. Butcher has no qualms about hurting those around him. He is more than happy to let Hughie use Starlight for their own benefit, even though she shows no malicious intent. He also has no issues with sacrificing Becca's young son Ryan because he was a Supe. Butcher's regard for life began to diminish. Readers of the comics have started to see the signs of Butcher's character pointing towards the true villain.

"The Boys" comic culminates in a final showdown between Hughie and Butcher. Butcher is so possessed with rage over Supes that he plans on taking them all out in one fell swoop. Butcher has no reason or humanity left at this point. He admits that the entire point of recruiting Hughie was for Hughie to balance him out. Hughie was his fail safe to stop him from an event such as this one.

The show is already building up to this point. When Hughie meets Butcher's aunt in Season 2, she mentions that he reminds her of Butcher's brother Lenny. Lenny was more sensitive than Butcher and died as a result. Butcher has many motivations to go dark. His wife Becca was killed in a showdown with Homelander. Butcher also holds tight to the trauma of Becca's assault. Butcher's violence seems to be increasing. When his father makes an appearance, it is clear that Butcher's home life was full of physical abuse. These traumas have compounded and made Butcher the man he is today.

Even so, there are moments of light for Butcher. While Becca is killed, Butcher agrees to protect Ryan and deliver him to the proper authorities. There are moments where Butcher listens to Hughie's reason. There is always a possibility the show won't go in this direction, but more evidence is piling up that Butcher can't be saved. The Boys' stalemate with Homelander can only go on for so long. Butcher becoming the villain of the story would be a satisfying conclusion for fans of the comics as well as the show.