The Boys is based on the comic of the same name by Garth Ennis and Darick Robertson, which follows members of The Boys, a superhero team whose mission it is to keep the world safe from potentially dangerous superheroes. One such member, William Butcher, was actually once an SAS operative in England, who was so effective at his job that he eventually caught the attention of CIA agents who recruited him to work as an assassin for them after he realized his targets were actually all superhumans who had been deemed too dangerous to live by various governments worldwide. SAS Operative-Turned-Supernatural Hunter: The William Butcher Story
Table of Contents
Who Is Karl Urban as William “Billy” Butcher
Karl Urban is an actor best known for his roles in the Star Trek and Lord of the Rings franchises. He takes on the role of William Billy Butcher, the leader of a group of hunters who track and kill supernatural beings. Billy becomes the hunter after his wife is killed by demons while they were hunting them down. Now he uses what he learned as a soldier to hunt these creatures down so that no one else has to go through what he did. In addition to leading the team of hunters, Billy is also their most dangerous member. His trademark weapon is an old fashioned double-barreled shotgun which fires slugs with silver dust embedded in it.
From Middle Class SAS Operator To Supernatural Hunter
William Billy Butcher was born into a middle-class family in England. His father was a butcher and his mother was a housewife. As he grew up, he eventually followed in his father’s footsteps by working as a butcher. One day while at work, an altercation broke out with one of the customers and Butcher defended himself against the aggressor with a meat cleaver.
Feeling empowered by this newfound power, he soon became interested in finding out more about it, learning everything he could about the supernatural world that existed all around him. He also had some luck when after stumbling across an abandoned warehouse where various people were being held hostage by terrorists with superhuman abilities, he managed to save them from certain death without so much as breaking a sweat thanks to his new found strength.
How Billy Butcher Evolved From Special Forces To Superhuman
SAS operative-turned-supernatural hunter, William Butcher, has seen it all. But it was the disappearance of his wife that led him to distrust all Supes and start the Boys. With a particular hatred towards Homelander, Billy will stop at nothing to find answers. In the third season, Luca Villacis and Josh Zaharia take on the roles of young Billy and Butcher, respectively. Viewers get a glimpse into what shaped Billy into the man he is today.
In addition to being betrayed by his only love, he’s also driven by guilt over the death of his family and those who were close to him during an undercover mission gone wrong.
The show delves into Billy’s history and how he became a superhuman himself – though unlike most supes who receive their powers through lab accidents or as children, he attained them as an adult after injecting himself with experimental drugs in order to save his life.
Behind-The-Scenes with Billy Butcher
You might not know it from watching the show, but Billy Butcher is actually based on a real person. Karl Urban did a lot of research to prepare for the role, and even met with the real Billy Butcher to get a sense of who he is.
While the character of Butcher is mostly fiction, there are some elements of his backstory that are based in reality. For example, Urban’s research into the SAS informed his portrayal of Billy’s military background.
Actor Karl Urban On Becoming the Leader of The Boys
Karl Urban is no stranger to playing the tough guy. He’s had roles in some of Hollywood’s most popular action movies, like The Bourne Supremacy and Star Trek. But in Amazon Prime’s new series The Boys, he takes on the role of a tough guy with a very different mission: hunting down evil superhumans. In our exclusive interview, Urban tells us about how he prepared for his role as Billy Butcher and what it was like working with co-star Elisabeth Shue.
Writer Garth Ennis on creating Billy Butcher
Butcher is a lot of things. He’s kind of a John Wayne character, he’s got that laconic delivery, that drawl. But he’s also quite a dark character, he’s got a lot of anger in him. The Punisher has been his comic book alter ego for years and it was great to see someone like Urban take on the role. Urban told us that what drew him to the role was his ability to be both good and bad at the same time – I love playing these conflicted characters where you’re not really sure what they’re going to do next.
Director Dan Trachtenberg (10 Cloverfield Lane) On Taking Over For Their Debut Season 2 Episode 3 Truth
In an interview with Collider, Trachtenberg revealed that taking over the show for its second season was a dream come true. He went on to say that he was a huge fan of the comic book series and that he felt honored to be able to bring the characters to life on the small screen. Trachtenberg also spoke about how excited he was to work with Urban, who he called one of the best actors working today. I’ve been so lucky because I’m coming in at the end of Season 2, which is a fantastic place to jump in, said Trachtenberg. You know all these amazing things have happened in this world and these characters are fully developed.
So it’s just great for me as a director to get in there and start asking questions and figuring out what my relationship is going to be with them.
I think Karl is one of the best actors working today, said Trachtenberg. He brings such depth and empathy to his character without ever sacrificing masculinity or strength or ferocity.
Trachtenberg concluded by saying that they’re still getting used to each other but they are very much enjoying it.
What is Karl Urban’s Billy Butcher’s accent?
Karl Urban, who plays the gruff and mysterious Billy Butcher on Amazon’s The Boys, is from New Zealand. However, his character has a very different accent. Butcher’s accent is a mix of several different British regional accents, including Cockney and Received Pronunciation. This gives him a unique sound that sets him apart from the other characters on the show.
Who plays Billy Butcher in’the boys’?
Karl Urban, who you may recognize from his roles in the Star Trek franchise and The Lord of the Rings trilogy, plays Billy Butcher in Amazon Prime’s hit show The Boys. Billy is the leader of the titular Boys, a group of vigilantes who keep tabs on and often take down superpowered individuals, or Supes. He’s a no-nonsense kind of guy with a quick wit and sharp tongue.
What was Karl Urban’s first acting role?
Karl Urban’s first acting role was in the New Zealand film Forgotten Silver as a young man named Colin McKenzie. He then went on to roles in Xena: Warrior Princess and Hercules: The Legendary Journeys. However, it was his role as Dr. Leonard Bones McCoy in the 2009 film Star Trek that made him a household name.
