Amazon The Boys: Who is Soldier Boy and why Jensen Ackles is perfect

Who is The Boys’ Soldier Boy and why  is the character a good career move for Jensen Ackles?

Season 2 of Amazon’s The Boys doesn’t debut until September 4th, but the creative team have already got the ball rolling on season 3.

Three weeks ago, the show was given an early renewal and we assumed that was the end of the news… at least until the second started. We were wrong. It was recently announced that Supernatural star Jensen Ackles (who plays Dean Winchester) will be playing Soldier Boy in the third offering.

Fans of the comic book series and both The Boys TV series and Supernatural are happy about this news. Everyone else is probably thinking, “Who the heck is Soldier Boy?!”

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Who is Soldier Boy?

Soldier Boy is the leader of the superhero team Payback. A play off of the Avengers. Both superhero and the word leader are used loosely.

We know that most of the superheroes in The Boys’ world aren’t exactly heroic. Also, leader isn’t something we should use to describe Soldier Boy, mostly because he has zero leadership qualities and Stormfront does all of the leading. Then there’s the hero part.

Soldier Boy is just like all of the other superpowers in The Boys. If it doesn’t help him, he doesn’t care. Now, this is the Soldier Boy in the present. In the video above, Jensen Ackles is reading a comic book with the original Soldier Boy.

Without giving too much away, there was an original Soldier Boy who fought in World War II. Again, “fought” is another word that’s used loosely. Soldier Boy was part of a group called The Avenging Squad. They were some of the first people to be exposed to Compound V. An experiment that both worked and failed. Yes, the experiment did give them powers, but the failure came in the execution. Giving people powers doesn’t mean they have the ability to use them. Soldier Boy and the rest of the Avenging Squad died horribly after thinking they could save the day with powers alone. The Germans found the Americans’ camp thanks to an overzealous member of The Avenging Squad. He ultimately caused the death of his teammates and American Soldiers.

How does this help Jensen Ackles?

Jensen Ackles has been playing Dean Winchester on Supernatural since he was 27 years old. 15 years later, he’s 42 and has been flawless in this show ever since. He may not have had any major film roles during that time because of his commitment to the show, but that kind of longevity isn’t something a lot of actors can boast. It’s something Ackles should be proud of – especially since this series has been incredibly successful and ran longer than most shows.

With this being the last season of Supernatural, it’s time for Jensen Ackles to venture into new roles. Playing Soldier Boy could be the start of something amazing.

The uninformed may not know that Ackles can play more than just an action star. Throughout the series, he has shown us all that he can be serious, demonic (both literally and figuratively), funny, and downright emotional.

The Boys has its own separate fanbase so there’s plenty of opportunity for him to branch out with this new role and show new fans what he’s capable of. Moreover, he can show the world that he’s moved on from being Dean Winchester and ready to go on to new things.

We’ve seen Ackles play a coward in the “Yellow Fever” episode of Supernatural. Now, he’s going to have to do it differently. He’s going to have to act tough and still portray a milksop. That’s new territory. Sure, he’s run away in the show, but not like the “heroes” in The Boys.

Plus, there’s the adult part of the show. The Boys isn’t for all ages. We could very well see a side of Jensen Ackles we’ve never seen on Supernatural. He is going to swear and most likely say some things that are going to shock us – like most people on the show. Again, this will help him. Being typecast isn’t something actors want. If people can’t get past Ackles playing Dean Winchester, he may not be able to expand his resumé as an actor. This role, however, will give him the opportunity to do that.

Whether you’re a fan of Supernatural or The Boys, this is going to be fun. We (the viewers) are going to see Jensen Ackles start a new chapter in his acting career. For fans of The Boys, we’re getting another supe to detest. It’s a win for both sides. Season 3 is already gearing up to be incredible and they haven’t even started filming yet.

What do you think? Is this a good role for Jensen Ackles? Let us know in the comments below.