Erin Moriarty on 'The Boys': It's definitely unapologetic, even more so in season three

Bloodier and wilder is how actor Erin Moriarty describes the upcoming season three of "The Boys", the popular superhero satirical series that she says is "Marvel combined with a bit of social commentary". The series will take forward its inherent commentary about the issues that plague the real world, said Moriarty, who plays Annie January aka superhero Starlight on the show.

"It's definitely unapologetic. And I would say that it's even more unapologetic this season," the 27-year-old actor told PTI in a Zoom interview. "The Boys" tackles a world where superheroes are worshipped as celebrity figures by the masses but deep inside, they are rotten, corrupt and unhinged personalities who are controlled by an evil business corporation called Vought.

Their adversary is the titular band of everyday guys who have only one mission -- to expose the real nature of the so-called superheroes. Based on a bestselling comic by Garth Ennis and Darick Robertson, "The Boys" had a smash hit debut in 2019, earning praise for flipping the superhero genre on its head as well as doling out high action, drama and gore. The second season, which was released in 2020 on streaming service Prime Video, only took these moments a step ahead.

"If you've seen the two previous seasons, you know how far we take it. How wild it gets, how hilarious it gets and how generally iconic, classic it is. And when we say that we've taken it up a notch for season three, people know what we are talking about... Then there's no way to be mentally prepared.

"For the audience, they're just going to see things that they not only have never seen before and are crazier than previous seasons, but they're going to watch and see things that they never expected to see in their entire life, which is saying a lot," Moriarty teased.

One of the highlights of season three is going to be the 'Herogasm' episode, which is based on the raunchiest storyline of the original comic and will see the group of superheroes called The Seven indulging in some truly wild activities.

"People know that we're doing the 'Herogasm' episode, which is one of the things that I, as an actress, have never seen. And I don't think I ever will see again," Moriarty said.

Besides the plethora of bloody and gory moments, another reason for the popularity of "The Boys" is the way it tackles real-world problems -- from #MeToo and corporate corruption in season one to the rise of far-right and white supremacy in America in season two.

For Moriarty, the new season will see her character Starlight fight the systemic toxic masculinity, which is "still inherent in men and everyone in 2022", the actor said.

"It's a lot of overt and explicit toxic masculinity that she's battling in this season... I think she is so strong that she's always willing to stand up to it and be defeated. But the interesting thing about this season is that toxic masculinity comes from places and people we don't expect, which implies a real-world problem that it's still present in 2022.

"It's not always intentional. We're adapting to a new world where we have to look at men and women in power as equal human beings, instead of thinking of women in power as a threat." Moriarty said the third season will see Starlight, one of the few superheroes or supes as they are called in the show, who will continue with her determination to bring about a positive change in Vought.

"She's decided and committed to the fact that even though she's working within a corrupt kind of evil corporation, she still has the confidence to believe that she can enact change within the corporation.

"That's been the big battle for her, whether to enact change internally or externally to this corporation that is so corrupt and catalysing a lot of the evil corruptions of their world." The overwhelming success of "The Boys" often comes as a surprise to critics as fans of the superhero movies love the show's twisted take on the genre.

The actor said the series encompasses the superhero genre as viewers "get the superheroes and superhero fights. So people who are interested in the Marvel side of things, they do get their fix." "But I do think that we've tried to do something in addition to that, which is kind of spin the genre on its head and ask the question which I'm surprised hasn't been asked before -- if superheroes really exist, would they be so super? "The reality is that they would probably be more similar to the world of 'The Boys'. Maybe on a varying scale of darkness but I'm sure there are always people willing to take advantage of their position of power." Created and showrun by Eric Kripke, "The Boys" season three will also feature Karl Urban, Jack Quaid, Antony Starr, Dominique McElligott, Jessie T Usher, Laz Alonso, Chace Crawford, Karen Fukuhara, Claudia Doumit, and Jensen Ackles.

The first three episodes of the third season will premiere on Prime Video on June 3, with new episodes dropping on each Friday following, leading up to the epic season finale on July 8.

Image: Instagram/@theboystv