Erin Moriarty teases ‘The Boys’ Season 4: ‘It’s going to cause a lot of gasps’ [Complete Interview Transcript]
During a recent Gold Derby video interview, senior editor Marcus James Dixon spoke in-depth with Erin Moriarty (“The Boys”) about Season 3 of her Amazon Prime Video comic-book series, which is eligible at the 2023 Emmys. Watch the full video above and read the complete interview transcript below.
The actress plays Starlight/Annie January, who recently quit the superhero team known as The Seven. The third season of the comic-to-television adaptation streamed last summer and now contends at the impending Emmy Awards. The last time it was eligible in 2021, “The Boys” nabbed five Emmy nominations, including for Best Drama Series and Best Drama Writing (Rebecca Sonnenshine).
“Literally anything is possible,” Moriarty teased about Season 4, which has already been filmed. She added that the show will become “more character driven” next year and that “the circumstances somehow get crazier.” Moriarty revealed at the end of our webchat, “I don’t think anyone could possibly predict what’s going to happen, and I think it’s going to cause a lot of gasps. It’s going to require some mental preparation, even if people know what our show entails.”
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Marcus James Dixon: I am Marcus James Dixon with Gold Derby, and we are here with Erin Moriarty, who plays Starlight/Annie January on Amazon Prime Video’s The Boys. Erin, so season three aired last summer, but it’s eligible now at the Emmy Awards. And when you think back at the season as a whole, do you have a personal favorite moment or storyline that you’re just so proud of?
Erin Moriarty: I mean, I feel like as much as this seems like the most obvious thing to say, there’s a reason that this is the most obvious and that would be the moment when Annie quits The Seven. And I would say that that’s just because I think whilst there are differing opinions in terms of when Annie should do it, and many felt that she should have done it sooner, maybe even perhaps later in terms of her role within that corporation and how much change she could enact versus how little she could have, and her awareness of that, playing that character gave me so much… I wouldn’t say empathy because I’ve never quite been in a position so challenging, but so much sympathy for everyone that we judge when we look at situations they’re in and come to harsh conclusions in terms of, “Oh, I would’ve been able to transcend that sooner and I would’ve been able to quit sooner,” or, “I would’ve stayed in it and I would’ve been able to develop thicker skin.” I think that you’ve got to respect the process she’s been through, even if it includes things that one would deem immoral. And I think that also, we were talking the other day about Annie’s development in season three, and one of my favorite things to happen was that she was made co-captain. And that moment where she finally thinks, “Oh my God, this is it. While it’s going to be so painful, this is the moment where the pain is going to be worth it. There’s going to be a woman in a position of power. This is going to be historical in terms of Vought, and who am I to deny that? Who am I to not try?” And I think it really poses the question which is, is Stan Edgar genuinely giving her this role because of his belief in her, because of his desire to give a woman a position of power, or is it being driven by consumerism and is it just feminism for the sake of being exhibitionist and being “woke”? And I think that that’s almost more infuriating then if there were outward misogyny and she were able to just leave, which there has been. I think that women are getting really fed up now with this concept of exhibitionist feminism for the sake of catering to certain people that are dominating consumerism. So I think when she realizes how much she’s fed that, she refuses to participate anymore. But it’s a complicated storyline that involves mistakes and despite her being deemed the moral compass of the show, the mistakes are my favorite things to play because it also poses the concept that you can be a moral compass and also be nuanced and flawed, and there is no such thing as that perfect good girl that we’ve often portrayed and put in a box for so long.
MJD: I love all of the power games this season between Starlight and Homelander, Antony Starr, and now that you’re co-captains, I mean, he tries to get you to sing Happy Birthday to him during the birthday special and Starlight’s having none of it. She realizes he’s just trying to demean her.
EM: Yes.
MJD: What is your take on their salty relationship?
EM: It’s really interesting and it’s paradoxical and it’s disturbing because she is attempting to control as much as she can, and she’s trying to transcend her history of being confrontation-averse, and also she’s transcending every perception she’s ever had of this world very rapidly. In other words, it wasn’t that long ago that she even found out how corrupt this sort of Mr. America role and perception by the public is and how abusive this man is. And I think that that often takes a long time for one to implement certain realities like that. And I think that she does it in a way that is relatively quick, and I think she does it because it really tests her character and she steps up to that. But it was really, really, really fun to play because in certain respects, I felt that Annie took as much power as she possibly could. And then in other respects, one might say that she didn’t step into her power, but that was ultimately with the objective of trying to work within a system, find out intel, and ultimately take Homelander down. So I think it just begs the question of how much do people in her position, often women, need to just play nice and gather information until they erupt or until they have enough evidence to take someone down. And I think that the problem is the amount of hard evidence we need to take down someone who is so corrupt when there is so much money invested in them. So the amount of time she needs to invest, the amount of effort she needs to invest, and the amount of self sacrifices she needs to invest is something she’s willing to play with to a point. So she steps into her power, she confronts him whilst also knowing that there’s a reality to the world of The Boys and our real world at the moment, which is there’s too much evidence required to take down often men that are in positions of powers that have many people who are complicit in making sure that money isn’t lost for the sake of their sacrifice.
MJD: Mm-hmm. I am a big fan of reality shows and this season we saw American Hero, which you were the co-host of. And I loved your goodbye elimination tagline was, “Please hang up your capes and go.” It’s so authentic to all the other shows. Of course, there was a twist at the end when Homelander, again, trying to mess with you, he brings back The Deep.
EM: Right.
MJD: What’s going through her mind when she sees The Deep? Because, I mean, he assaulted her just a year or so ago.
EM: Gosh, even when I think about it now, my visceral or emotional response is the amount of conditioning that you cannot help but be privy to and participate in just by being a woman in an industry that has so many antiquated notions that haven’t been disrupted. I almost think that while it’s beyond disturbing and beyond infuriating and necessary to catalyze her to finally lead The Seven actually, and it’s one of the many factors that does, I think at that point, it’s not surprising. I think that’s the really, really unfortunate thing. I think she’s been conditioned by working in The Seven, she’s been conditioned by being around Homelander that something like that needs to happen to force her to really, really face the ugly realities of this world. And I think sometimes really brutal things like that need to happen to really cause someone to change the system and not be willing to participate in it. And I think the horrible thing is there are many things like that that happen that we, as women, aren’t surprised by. That homeland would weaponize a sexual abuser against her… The problem isn’t whether he did it. I think the problem is if we really ask ourselves, are we surprised he did it? And I don’t think anyone is. I think it’s a jaw-dropping moment viscerally, but I think ultimately it’s very on brand and I think that it’s horrible, and equally as horrible is it’s completely unsurprising.
MJD: Switching gears, Starlight is one of the only characters on the show who gets to do scenes with both groups of actors, the superhero group and then The Boys group. Are there different dynamics when you’re on set with one of the group of actors compared to the other?
EM: Totally. Totally. First of all, the amazing thing in the thorough line is that every… And this is really rare, and I don’t say this arbitrarily, is that both groups are so lovely and it made going back and forth between the two so much fun because ultimately it does come down to different dynamics, but everyone is just such a delight. But I did find one thing that I can’t help but think is dictated by the actors, but also the environment is that within The Seven and the superheroes, the circumstances are heightened, and also because of that, it felt like it’s such an intense world. And while we lean into the humor, most of us ultimately are really anchored by the character-driven component that both sides are just behind the scenes, just cracking jokes all day long and you will not stop laughing out loud. And it felt like it’s a necessary tactic to counteract the ultimately very dramatic and turbulent circumstances that each character is dealing with. Because I feel like it’s not up to us to play the humor, and of course there are moments when it is. Of course. But I think for all of us, what drives us and what really excites us is the character-driven elements and, for example, Antony Starr has so many moments that are hilarious, like guzzling breast milk and wearing lingerie. But he’s really, from my perspective, driven by the weaknesses of this character, the emotions and his childhood that led him to behave this way. And then in the other side of things, Mother’s Milk and his OCD and the past that’s revealed this season and his relationship to Soldier Boy. Those are the things that I feel like we almost have to cling onto the most because otherwise it’s too easy to get lost in the humor and you’re going to get lost in it anyway. And it’s still something that is a huge element of the show, but it feels like all we do is laugh. It feels like it’s just all day long because of the hours we put in these emotional characters ,is pranks, laughing, and we have to take ourselves so seriously in between action and cut. We don’t take ourselves too seriously personally, and it’s refreshing. It’s really nice.
MJD: The Herogasm episode was one that fans had been looking forward to for years, and I talked to costume designer Michael Ground, and he told me he created 30 orgy-centric super suits just for that episode and those scenes. What was it like being there in the thick of it?
EM: It was shocking at first and then hilarious, and then weirdly, I just became completely desensitized to all of it. But honestly, it was so many things at once. I felt weirdly educated by it, but I also at the same time felt like I was informed of things that I could never unsee and I just didn’t need to know about. But also I’m really curious and I really like those things, so I was drawn to them, but I could feel myself just attracted to certain things on set, certain props that you wouldn’t be able to imagine. It was informative and then it’s hilarious. And then I just developed so much respect for people who were working on that set because the things that were asked of them in terms of noises and ad-libs, I just thought, “You guys are amazing.” Their ability to embrace it and go with it was just… The hardest thing to do is not to laugh and grasp the dramatic circumstances of that entire scene, which funnily enough took a week to shoot, but of course it is a matter of minutes on TV. So by the end of it, I remember going to the bathroom on set and thinking, “Oh, thank God I didn’t lock the bathroom door,” and thinking, “Well, if they walk in on me and they see me and it’s not the most modest moment, it’s going to be the least graphic thing they’ve seen all week, and we’ve been in it together. Who cares at this point?” Just to relay how absurd and hilarious and intense it was.
MJD: In the season finale, the epic season finale, Starlight has that heroic moment in the TV studio where she pushes Soldier Boy back with her powers. First of all, what was it like working with Jensen Ackles? And that scene, was that difficult to film? I imagine there was some wire work and lots of visual effects.
EM: Yes, wire work. Incredible, incredible stunt work. I have a stunt woman, Jen, who’s amazing. And if you saw what she did, you would not believe that she was able to walk afterwards because of the way Soldier Boy sort of, after I blast him, the way he comes and attacks me and I kind of go flying. We just have the best stunt team and the best stunt doubles that they were really committed and able to prepare us. But it required going in on the weekends and choreographing it, sort of like it’s a dance because we were working really hard on the finale, and you can’t come in unprepared for that sort of thing because it really is about all joining forces. The stunt theme does their job, the actors do their job in terms of taking care of the emotional beats and making sure that the stunt side of it is immaculate, while also making sure that the emotional beats are driven and supported by the stunts. So it turns into this very cool synergistic effort, but it takes a lot of work. And Jensen Ackles is just the sweetest, kindest human being. So when you’re working long hours, when you’re on hour 16 and you’re just exhausted and you look up and it’s him, you almost have to put in more effort to really train your brain to remind yourself that that’s Soldier Boy and not lovely Jensen walking in that makes you smile when he walks into a room because he just quickly became a part of the family. And that’s kind of what, at this point, feels like one of the most important things we can maintain, which is just bringing people in that are humble and want to do a good job and continue to elevate the show, which is exactly what he did whilst being extremely kind people that are collaborative and have, frankly, zero egos. And so it was lovely and it was such a joy and for him to play such an evil character is a testament to his talent as well.
MJD: And before we go Erin, I’m wondering if you could tease anything about season four of The Boys. Last we saw her, she did quit The Seven and she was kind of welcomed into The Boys group. Is there anything you can reveal?
EM: Yeah, well, I would say, and this is obviously general because it’s impossible not to be whilst teasing, but in this world what I love is anything is possible. Literally anything is possible, and so our ability to play with that whilst also, of course, because this is what our showrunner is insistent on and I love it, becoming more character driven, diving more into the nuances of each character, diving more into the gray area of moralities, even with our characters that are deemed the most moral characters on the show. The circumstances somehow get crazier, but not just arbitrarily bigger. It’s truly just because the stakes keep escalating, and I don’t think anyone could possibly predict what’s going to happen, and I think it’s going to cause a lot of gasps. It’s going to require some mental preparation, even if people know what our show entails.
MJD: Well now I can’t wait for the next season.
EM: Yeah.
MJD: Best of luck at the upcoming Emmy Awards to you and everyone associated with the show. It’s one of the best shows on television.
EM: That’s very sweet. Thank you. I appreciate it.
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