Warning: The following article contains spoilers for Prime Video’s The Boys, Season 4, Episode 2.
Season 4 of The Boys brings back the nasty superhero violence fans love so much in the show. Regarding its cast, it also features some heavy-weight reinforcements, including Hollywood legend Will Ferrell.
Ferrell began his prolific comedy career on Saturday Night Live before becoming the face of cult classic movies such as Elf and The Anchorman: The Legend of Ron Burgundy. Behind the cameras, Ferrell has also been a successful producer, a position that allowed him to win five Emmy Awards for the show Succession. As if this wasn’t enough to prove he’s more than a funny person, Ferrell has also starred in critically acclaimed dramatic roles like Stranger than Fiction and Everything Must Go.
From Barbie to Megamind, Ferrell uses his magnetic energy to improve everything he touches. So, once Prime Video revealed the actor would join The Boys cast in Season 4, we all knew Ferrell would have a particular part to play. But what kind of role could make the most of Ferrell’s talent in a world of over-the-top violence and hilarious superpowered people?
Will Ferrell has a hilarious cameo in Season 4 of The Boys
In Season 4 of The Boys, Will Ferrell plays… Will Ferrell! In Episode 2, “Life Among the Septics,” we are taken to a film set where Vought is shooting the supposed origin story of A-Train (Jessie T. Usher). Of course, since A-Train’s factual background is not dramatic enough for a member of The Seven, the movie takes some liberties. For instance, instead of sticking to A-Train’s middle-class childhood, the movie pretends the speedster worked as a drug dealer before being saved by an average white sports coach, played by Farrell.
The scene plays with the White Savior trope, as Ferrell’s character is given the credit for the achievements of A-Train. Vought, as usual, wants to buy the love of racial minorities, but they can’t get rid of the structural racism of their way of thinking. To make everything even more absurd, A-Train gets acting notes from director Adam Bourke (P.J. Byrne), who wants the hero to change how he speaks to reflect his fake “street” past. As for Ferrell, Bourke only notes that he might win an Oscar for his brilliant work. Ferrell fans have wondered what kind of weird and unexpected character the actor would play in The Boys. As it turns out, Prime Video found a brilliant solution to surprise everyone: it featured Ferrell himself on the show. Hopefully, that’s not the last The Boys cameo in Ferrell’s career.