A Minute With: 'The Boys' actors Urban and Ackles on season 3

In an interview with Reuters, actors Karl Urban, who plays vigilante Butcher, and Jensen Ackles, who joins as new superhero Soldier Boy, spoke about the latest season, whose first two episodes premiered on Amazon Prime Video on June 3. Below are excerpts edited for length and clarity.

Comedy-drama "The Boys" returns for a third season, for more bad antics by selfish superheroes.

Based on comic book by Garth Ennis and Darick Robertson, the show follows a rogue group of vigilantes called The Boys who are trying to take down The Seven, a group of superheroes ('supes') who are adored by the world but who abuse their powers. In an interview with Reuters, actors Karl Urban, who plays vigilante Butcher, and Jensen Ackles, who joins as new superhero Soldier Boy, spoke about the latest season, whose first two episodes premiered on Amazon Prime Video on June 3.

Below are excerpts edited for length and clarity. Q: What is the main theme this season?

Urban: "A lot about fathers and sons, it's about relationships. Season three really dives deeper into the humanity and the tragedy of you know, those paternal relationships." Q: Billy is battling his own demons again, becoming what he resents - a supe - doesn't he?

Urban: "To me that was the fun element about playing Butcher this season is his palatable level of frustration, this inability to fight the fight the way that he wants to fight it and he has an opportunity to level the playing field. And the moral dilemma is will you allow yourself to turn into the monster, in order to defeat the monster." Q: Jensen, you play the original superhero - can you tell us more about Soldier Boy?

Ackles: "This character (Soldier Boy) is essentially brought into the fold because... Butcher is willing to go that extra mile and level up to any level possible that he needs to in order to take down what he is trying to take down." Q: Do you look at superheroes differently now?

URBAN: "It's been really interesting to see the evolution of the superhero genre and if you just track from the Adam West days of 'Batman' in the '60s and then you have a look at (director Tim) Burton and... then now into really great storytelling with the last 'Batman' movie and obviously, (director Christopher) Nolan's 'Dark Knight'. "'The Boys' fits into that world well because it offers an alternative narrative to the one that is predominantly out there in the mainstream, and I think that's part of the appeal."

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