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With the return of the hit superhero satireThe Boyson June 13,2024, Amazon Prime Video was caught in an unexpected dilemma. Although the series continued to break viewership records, drawing 55 million viewers in 39 days (viaThe Hollywood Reporter), the consensus among fans suggests the show has lost its magic. For instance, the show’s inaugural season holds a 91% Rotten Tomatoes Audience Score, nearly 40 percentage points higher than Season 4’s mediocre 53% rating.
Moreover, New Zealand starAntony Starr, who plays theamusing villain HomelanderinThe Boys,has recently expressed misgivings about being publicly idolized and mistaken for his evil character (viaThe L.A. Times). The recent backlash toThe BoysSeason 4 offers a perfect opportunity for fans of the show to check out Starr’s underrated crime seriesBanshee, the Cinemax Original that aired from 2013 to 2016.
Antony Starr’s Journey to The Boys
While most audiences will recognize Antony Starr as the corrupt villain Homelander in the satirical superhero seriesTheBoys, Starr is a terrific New Zealand actor who has built a 30-year resume in Hollywood.After starting onXena: Warrior Princessin the early ’90s, Starr steadily increased his profile by appearing in several movies and TV shows. Early notable movie credits includeWithout a Paddle, The World’s Fastest Indian, andWish You Were Here.
On television, Starr scored his break-out in 2005 when he was cast as Jethro and Van West in the popular crime comedy seriesOutrageous Fortune. Starr appeared on the show 107 times between 2005 and 2010. Following his performance inOutrageous Fortune, Starr landed recurring roles on such TV shows asRush, Tricky Business,andLowdownbefore scoring his best and most lasting career role inBansheein 2013. Yet,despiteBansheeshowcasing his best work, fans continue to recognize Starr as Homelander fromThe Boys, a refreshing spin on the superhero genre that has begun to lose steam in its most recent season.
Antony Starr as Homelander in The Boys
Based on the irreverent comic book by Garth Ennis and Darick Robertson,The Boysis a superhero satire that premiered on Prime Video in 2019. The story concerns The Boys, a ragtag band of superheroes who work for Vought Industries, a mega-corporation that commercially exploits the heroes for financial gain. Under Billy Butcher’s (Karl Urban) guidance, The Boys (Supes) take on The Seven, a septet of evil villains led by Homelander (Starr), a corrupted symbol of American ideals. Despite his wholesome appearance and noble public behavior, Homelander is the anti-Captain America who only cares about himself.
Due to the character’s deceptive nature,Homelander gives Starr a plum role to sink his teeth into, play with, and express his versatile acting range. As his most popular role, it’s no surprise that Starr has scored Saturn Award and Critics Choice Award nominations for his performance as Homelander. After two consecutive ensemble nominations in 2019 and 2020, Starr won an IGN Award for Best Dramatic TV Performance in 2020 for his work inThe Boys. In 2023, Starr won Critics Choice Super Awards for Best Villain in a Series and Best Actor in a Superhero Series.
Yet, despite the awards success, Starr recently lamented how fans idolize Homelander for all the wrong reasons.Speaking with the L.A. Times, Starr confessed:
“There’s a very strange thing that’s happened with the character, though he is clearly not a good guy. A lot of people have glommed onto him. There’s a weird element out there that actually kind of idolize him. I’ve seen some s— on Twitter and I’m like, ‘Wait, What? You are missing the point entirely!’”
Given his hesitations aboutThe Boysand its misguided fanbase,Starr’s criminally underrated TV seriesBansheeoffers a perfect antidote. Those who enjoy Starr’s performance as Homelander inThe Boysare in for a treat when they meet Lucas Hood inBanshee.
15 Worst Things Homelander Has Done on The Boys (So Far)
Beneath Homelander’s perfectly structured image is a psychopath who will stop at nothing to get what he wants; here are 15 horrible things he’s done.
The Boys Fans Will Love Starr’s Performance in Banshee
Bansheeis an American crime drama created by Jonathan Tropper and David Schickler for Cinemax. Along with the lead-in miniseriesBanshee Origins: Checking Inand the 12-part web seriesBanshee: Origins,Banshee’s pilot debuted on July 10, 2025.The story follows Lucas Hood (Starr), a conniving ex-convict and expert thief who moves to the small Amish town of Banshee, Pennsylvania, and assumes the identity of a murdered sheriff. Much of the conflict revolves around Hood keeping his secret identity intact and remaining hidden from crime boss Rabitt (Ben Cross) as he begins to enforce his unique brand of vigilante justice in town.
Lasting four seasons and 38 episodes, fans of thehit superhero showThe Boysneed to see how effective Starr is in a much different role than they’re used to.Unlike the arrogant, egomaniacal narcissism of Homelander, Starr plays Hood with a much grittier intensity and a grounded performance that is almost unrecognizable when comparing the two. Between the physically commanding violence of murdering a character like Chayton (Geno Segers) and the vulnerable emotional outburst of confessing his true identity to Brock Lotus (Matt Servitto), Starr shines bright indeed.
10 Times The Boys Went Too Far
These shocking moments in The Boys prove why the subversive, darkly comedic reinvention of the superhero genre continues to excite and unsettle fans.
Why Banshee Is So Underrated
Beyond Starr’s excellent performance,Bansheehas been well-received by critics and general audiences. The show holds a 90% Rotten Tomatoes and 92% Audience Score. It also boasts a 66 Metascore, 84 User Score, and 8.4 IMDb rating, indicating wide appeal. However,despite the approval ratings,Bansheeremains underrated due to its low viewership, especially compared to a hit likeThe Boys.
According to Deadline, the first season ofBansheebecame the 10th-highest-rated Cinemax original series. By comparison,The Boysis Amazon’s most-viewed original series. Yet, despite starting slowly,Bansheebecame more popular as the first season progressed. The Season 1 finale drew the highest viewership numbers for any Cinemax original series finale up to then. AlthoughBansheewould increase its viewership in passing seasons, the show failed to crack the Top 50 most-watched shows in America in 2013-24 (via TV Guide). The acclaim only went so far, andBansheecouldn’t contend with such powerhouse TV shows asThe Big Bang Theory, The Walking Dead, NCIS, Blue Bloods, The Blacklist, and others.
Yet, for fans ofThe Boysand Homelander especially,Bansheeis a worthwhile series to see how far Antony Starr has come and how diverse his acting talents are. It would be a shame to forever synonymize Starr with anegocentric supervillain like Homelanderwithout witnessing the full range of Starr’s performative skills.InThe Boys,Starr plays a bad guy posing as a good guy. In Banshee, Starr also plays a villain disguising himself as a hero. Yet, despite the vast viewership chasm, Starr brings far more humanity, morality, and justice to Lucas Hood than Homelander could ever dream of.
Bansheeis available to stream on Max
