What We Can Expect From The Fifth And Final Season Of 'the Boys'

Antony Starr as Homelander and Cameron Crovetti as Ryan in season four of "The Boys."

Jasper Savage/Prime Video

• Prime Video's "The Boys" will end with its upcoming fifth season.
• "Supernatural" stars Jared Padalecki and Misha Collins will have roles in the final season.
• There's no release date yet, but filming is underway and expected to continue through mid-2025.

All good things must come to an end, including Prime Video's popular superhero satire series "The Boys."

The show was officially renewed for a fifth season in May 2024. Two days before the season four premiere, creator and showrunner Eric Kripke revealed via X (formerly Twitter) and Instagram that the upcoming fifth season would be the show's last.

"#TheBoys Season 4 Premiere Week is the perfect time to announce: Season 5 will be the Final Season! Which was always my plan, I just had to be cagey about it until I got final permission from @voughtintl,'" Kripke wrote on Instagram.

"But I'm thrilled to bring this story to a gory, epic, emotional climax. So check out Season 4, premiering THIS THURSDAY, because the end has begun! Hop in for the ride. Which will be bumpy. And probably a little moist. @theboystv @primevideo."

Here's everything we know about season five of "The Boys," so far.

Season 4 is designed to be a darker, more introspective season ahead of the all-out action of season 5

Erin Moriarty as Annie January on season four, episode three of "The Boys."

Prime Video

Season four explores the characters' biggest fears and unresolved traumas. Kripke compared the show to a three-act film and said that season four serves as act two.

"It's like the darkest point, the most introspective point," he told Deadline. "It's the one where the characters have to emotionally face their existential trauma. So then they're able to jump onto the roller coaster ride that is the climax of the movie."

In an interview with LADbible, Kripke said that the season four finale makes the five-season plan even clearer.

"There's no way a show goes one more season after the events of that finale," the showrunner said.

"As far as we're concerned, it's our show's version of the apocalypse," he said of season five.

Jeffrey Dean Morgan hopes to return as Joe Kessler

Jeffrey Dean Morgan as Joe Kessler and Karl Urban as Billy Butcher in season four of "The Boys."

Jasper Savage/Prime Video

Morgan joined season four of "The Boys" as one of Butcher's old buddies who reenters his life. It's not until episode six that fans learn that the real Joe is actually dead, and Butcher has been hallucinating the whole time — a side effect of his brain tumor.

In season four, the hallucination version of Joe serves as the manifestation of Butcher's bloodthirsty side, the part of him that wants to wipe out all supes. During the last moments of the finale, Butcher is seen driving off with the last dose of the supe-killing virus, with Joe smiling with satisfaction in the rearview mirror.

"I don't know how you do season five without an appearance, at least," Morgan told Variety when asked if he'll return for the final season. "That's my feeling. I've never had any official talks about it, but I think it'd be really hard to carry on without some sort of resolution — and hopefully that'll be a whole season!"

Jensen Ackles will return as Soldier Boy, and he'll be joined by his 'Supernatural' costars Jared Padalecki and Mischa Collins

Jared Padalecki, Misha Collins, and Jensen Ackles of "Supernatural" in May 2019.

Kevin Mazur/Getty Images for The CW Network

Jensen Ackles joined "The Boys" during season three as Soldier Boy, an obnoxious supe and the biological father of Homelander (Antony Starr). Ackles was absent from season four but had a cameo at the very end of the season.

Ackles made a surprise appearance at a panel for "The Boys" at San Diego Comic-Con in July 2024, where it was announced that he would be a series regular for season five.

"You know, what we realized was we really hadn't explored the father-son relationship much between Homelander and Soldier Boy," Kripke told video game blog Gamesradar+ at SDCC. "There's a lot of material there, how Soldier Boy feels about Homelander, how Homelander feels about his dad, and so we really wanted to dig into that relationship."

Jensen Ackles as Soldier Boy in the season three finale of "The Boys."

Courtesy of Amazon Studios

There's also going to be another "Supernatural" reunion.

In February 2025, the social media accounts for "The Boys" posted a video revealing that Ackles' "Supernatural" costars Jared Padalecki and Misha Collins will also appear in season five.

Additional new cast members for season 5 include "Hamilton" star Daveed Diggs and "Stranger Things" actor Mason Dye.

Variety reported that Diggs will be a series regular. Dye will play a supe named Bombsight, who's already been referenced in "The Boys" as one of the oldest known supes in history.

Kripke already has ideas for the series finale ending

Nathan Mitchell as Black Noir and Chace Crawford as The Deep in season four, episode two of "The Boys."

Jasper Savage/Prime Video

Kripke told Deadline that the writers' room spent weeks discussing the show's mythology and broad ideas for season five, and he has a good idea of how the series will conclude.

"I know that moment where the title card comes up, and it says six months later, and you see where everybody is," he said. "I know that. I can really write the last 10 pages of this story right now."

He explained to The Hollywood Reporter that everything hasn't been mapped out in detail yet because he wants to allow the writers to suggest ideas and twists.

"I don't totally know how we're going to get there, but I know the destination," he said.

Season 5 of 'The Boys' will definitively wrap up the show's story

Karl Urban as Butcher and Antony Starr as Homelander in the season three finale of "The Boys."

Courtesy of Amazon Studios

"The Boys" juggles many characters and storylines, but the heart of the show is the dynamic between sworn enemies Butcher (Karl Urban) and Homelander (Antony Starr).

Homelander already teased a "scorched" earth" destiny for him and Butcher in the season three premiere. It looks like fans will likely see that play out in season five.

"The show is a serialized story that is about Butcher and Homelander slowly crashing into each other, and the show doesn't work without either of those," Kripke told The Hollywood Reporter. "So, you just can't keep that going on forever, you have to let them smash into each other."

"What I would say is, this particular story is ending, the Butcher-Homelander is ending," he told Variety. "But there can be other stories and other corners of the universe."

There are already various "Boys" offshoots in different stages; the college-set "Gen V" was renewed for a second season in October 2023, and a Mexico spin-off is in the works. There's also the prequel spin-off series "Vought Rising," which will star Ackles and Aya Cash, reprising her role as Stormfront. Entertainment Weekly reported that Dye will return as Bombsight in "Vought Rising."

But the upcoming fifth season of "The Boys" will be the end of the road for the show.

"This story of 'The Boys' will not continue on," Kripke told Entertainment Weekly, adding that some other potential spin-offs in development have yet to be announced.

There's no release date yet for season 5

Jack Quaid as Hughie Campbell and Erin Moriarty as Annie January in season four of "The Boys."

Jasper Savage/Prime Video

In July 2024, Kripke told Variety that season five would begin filming around mid-November.

"And I don't know when it'll premiere yet, but we'll be shooting well into middle of '25," he said.

The showrunner added that, like past seasons, the final installment will be comprised of eight episodes.

Since season five is anticipated to film through 2025, that means it likely won't premiere until 2026.