The Fake Movies In The Boys We Want To See The Most
As The Boys considers a gritty, cynical take on what the world would really be like if superheroes existed, one thread connects their world to ours: tons and tons of superhero movies. In fact, the very first episode starts with two teenagers arguing over which is better: Translucent's movies or the Deep's. Unfortunately, we can't weigh in on the conversation because they're not real films, but it raises an interesting question: what would they be like if they were?
Vought is in the business of superheroes. They create them, they manage them, and they make massive movies about them. Just like we have the Marvel Cinematic Universe, The Boys' world has the Vought Cinematic Universe. Every member of the Seven has their own film (or four) and even small-time supes have had their shot on screens big and small. But this season shows VoughtStudios bringing all the big names together in their Avengers or Justice League equivalent, Dawn of the Seven.
As Amazon's description for the episode "We Gotta Go Now" reads, "VoughtStudios is pleased to announce that filming has begun on #DawnOfTheSeven. 12 years of VCU movies have led to this. If you like movies about One Hero, you'll love a movie about Seven Heroes. Introducing newest member @RealStormfront! See how the legend began! In theaters Summer 2021!"
12 years is an awfully long time to put the group together. So, what films have they been making in all that time?
Each hero has their own stand alone films
Homelander (Antony Starr) seems to have the most films under his belt, as he tells Ryan that he's starred in Homelander: Origins, Homelander: Rise of a Hero, Homelander: Darkest Day, and Homelander: Brightest Night. He says they're all rated PG, but that's a little hard to believe, unless Vought went for a cheesy '70s style instead of the PG-13 action-packed films that are popular today. Heck, Homelander is probably old enough to have starred in reboots of his own movies.
Without each of the Seven gloating about their film credits to their estranged children, we have a lot less information on the others' acting roles. Still, paying attention to the show's small details, we can see that Translucent has two Invisible Force movies, there's The Deep: Rising Tide, Black Noir: Insurrection, and what appears to be a Queen Maeve film, though the title is hidden. Plus, soon after Starlight joins the team, Vought begins producing Citizen Starlight. Lastly, we can't forget Popclaw's Terminal Beauty and Mesmer's procedural drama The Mesmerizer (the '90s series looks amazing, and it's the one that really should exist).
Now, as for the actual content of these films, it's hard to tell and seems a little contradictory. Much of it is pure fiction, as the scenes about Dawn of the Seven show mutants and New York in rubble. However, that "We Gotta Go Now" episode description teases, "See how the legend began!" as if they're trying to pass off the film as a true story. Meanwhile, the teaser for Citizen Starlight seems more like a documentary. And while Homelander has Homelander: Origins, everyone in the world of The Boys has believed until recently that people are simply born with superpowers, so it would be hard to sell an origin story as real. In short, the jury is still out on whether the Seven's fans think these films are retellings of real events or just fictional romps with their favorite celebrities.
Dawn of the Seven looks like a mess, but maybe it'd be so bad it's good?
During season 2, we get to see the Supes actually filming one of their movies, Dawn of the Seven, and it looks like a doozy. Features the original Seven getting together just as the title card appears, the film goes on to introduce Starlight and Stormfront, presumably after getting rid of Lamplighter and Translucent.
It's astonishing that the VCU took 12 years to get the Seven together and then changed the lineup in their first film. It sounds like a lot for one movie to tackle — not to mention the mutants, a forced romantic subplot between Queen Maeve and a hacker, and the cheesy farewell to A-Train. But if Lin Manuel Miranda really voices Translucent, well, it's hard to not want to see that. Plus, the line "I know this is Dawn of the Seven but it's sunset on A-Train" puts the film in the running for So Bad It's Good status.
On the other hand, Stormfront critiques the script's depiction of women and its female empowerment scene is truly awkward and forced (not unlike the very real one in Avengers: Endgame). However, for some fans, The Boys' real "girls get it done" scene kicks Marvel's into the ground.
Of course, VCU movies are raking in the cash
Despite superheroes being very real in the world of The Boys, their blockbuster films do just as well as the fictional hero flicks in our world. In one first season episode, Vought International executive Madelyn Stillwell tells an auditorium full of investors that their film G-Men World War has grossed nearly $1.7 billion at the worldwide box office, which would launch it to number six on the Top Ten list of highest-grossing movies in our world. In real life, of course, that list is dominated by the Marvel Cinematic Universe.
How, exactly, the supes have so much time to star in all these films when they're supposedly being sent out on real world crime-fighting missions is a mystery. Of course, the Vought Cinematic Universe certainly rakes in more cash than stopping assaults, and Vought is always in it for the money.