The latest episode of Prime Video’s The Boys dropped another bomb revelation about Billy Butcher, and it’s already driving fans insane. With Joe Kessler accusing Butcher of cheating on his late wife, Becca, what could it mean for the latter?
Series creator Eric Kripke has previously given notice to fans that there will be major modifications in the show as compared to its comic counterpart, and this scene with Butcher is one of them.
Did Billy Butcher Really Cheat On Becca?
In The Boys Season 4 Episode 7, Jeffrey Dean Morgan’s Joe Kessler revealed Karl Urban’s Billy Butcher was unfaithful to Becca. As the former interrogates the latter as to why he is protecting Ryan – Becca’s son with Homelander – Butcher says he made a promise to his late wife. Kessler then asked, “If your love was so perfect and pure, then why’d you f—k that waitress?”
The statement was a shock to the system, both Butcher and the audience. The truth is that he really cheated on Becca. Kessler is evidently a product of Butcher’s hallucination brought by his illness, therefore the accusation came from his own mind.
In the comics, Butcher didn’t do anything of the sort. The cheating part was only created for the show by Eric Kripke. While this is a huge deviation from the source material, it is a good change. Why? Because it helps to paint him further as a flawed being and Kessler represents his inner demon. The revelation made it appear that he wasn’t a good husband after all.
Eric Kripke Explains Why He Deviates From The Boys Comics
Eric Kripke talked about the deviations in The Boys in his interview with Variety. He revealed asking permission from writer Garth Ennis to make some notable changes in the story, and the latter agreed. Surprisingly, he warned about Billy Butcher’s portrayal.
I knew from the very jump, so my attack was, I said to Garth Ennis, ‘I want to get the characters and I want to get the tone right, but are you okay if the story isn’t the same?’ And he was great. He totally got it. It’s funny, what he always says to me is, ‘Just get Butcher right.’
Now, it seems intriguing that Ennis allowed Butcher’s plot twist in the recent episode. Kripke explained that he makes necessary alterations because he wants them “to be just a little more emotionally satisfying.”
The revelation of Butcher’s past will hopefully drive for more intense scenes in the upcoming season finale episode. The show has also been renewed for another installment which will mark its concluding chapter, so this would be a great avenue to address some of the lingering questions about the character.
Butcher is a diabolical figure and fans love him for that, and the bombshell that just dropped was proof that he was always been a hypocrite.
The Boys Season 4 is streaming on Prime Video.
