The Boys Spin-Off Uses Depp vs. Heard Trial to Draw Attention, Stirs Controversy
Making gory scenes isn’t enough for The Boys creators anymore, so to stir up some sweet controversy, the show’s spin-off took shots at Johnny Depp and Amber Heard.
The most popular parody of the superhero genre, The Boys has been around for several years now — and against all odds, the show is still going strong. So strong, in fact, that it launched a spin-off called Gen V that builds upon The Boys’ ideas and explores its world even more. And, of course, it’s just as nauseating at times.
But we’re not that easy to impress anymore, are we?
The general audience has grown all too used to gore and disgust, and when it comes to The Boys’ fans, it’s virtually impossible to make them sick with some casual blood and guts. There needs to be something else, something that would draw more attention and give Gen V more publicity…what could it be?
Controversies, of course!
Tek Knight, a modern “tech bro” version of Bruce Wayne, says the following line: “I’m gonna Johnny Depp someone so hard they’re going to want to crawl into a hole and die.” This, of course, directly refers to the infamous Johnny Depp vs. Amber Heard legal battle — but it’s hard to understand what the show’s stance on this matter is.
Most likely, it was Gen V’s creators’ deliberate choice to make this joke as open to interpretation as possible. This immediately stirred controversy online with numerous users arguing whether the punchline implied accusation or support for Johnny Depp, thus providing the show with huge publicity. And here we are, talking about it!
Curiously enough, Depp wasn’t the only celebrity Gen V directly attacked: another line referred to the famous Swedish YouTuber PewDiePie. One of the characters refers to herself as “kind of like PewDiePie without the Nazi stuff,” which is an obvious reference to several scandals involving Felix Kjellberg in the past.
We’ll have to wait and see whether Gen V will be satisfied with the current coverage or will keep coming up with more digs at celebrities to attract viewers, but it’s clear as day that if they keep going like this, the Internet will be flooded with Gen V debates.
Source: NME