Published May 8, 2026, 8:45 PM EDT
Dhruv is a Lead Writer in Screen Rant's New TV division. He has been consistently contributing to the website for over two years and has written thousands of articles covering streaming trends, movie/TV analysis, and pop culture breakdowns.
Before Screen Rant, he was a Senior Writer for The Cinemaholic, covering everything from anime to television, from reality TV to movies.
After high school, he was on his way to become a Civil Engineer. However, he soon realized that writing was his true calling. As a result, he took a leap and never looked back.
Soldier Boy's arc in The Boys season 5 has been incredibly cathartic, highlighting the end of an era for the Jensen Ackles character before his return in Vought Rising. Unlike most main characters in The Boys, Jensen Ackles' Soldier Boy has not been around since the show's season 1. He was mentioned several times in the series' early moments, but he did not show up in the flesh until The Boys season 3.
As soon as he showed up, though, he rose in the ranks to become a fan favorite. While some of the serious aspects of his story highlighted his PTSD, the Prime Video sci-fi show ensured that viewers never took him too seriously. Everything from his funny, nonsensical one-liners to his disappointment towards Homelander as his father was portrayed as gag.
Before The Boys season 3 ended its run, Soldier Boy was back in cryogenic imprisonment while Homelander considered bringing him back. In season 5, Homelander finally took the courage to have his father with him again. This time around, though, what initially started as a rivalry between the father and the son all over again soon morphed into something more intimate. Soldier Boy turned into a far more vulnerable figure.
The Boys Season 5 Has Changed Soldier Boy Forever
Soldier Boy was the same resentful, wisecracking grandfather of a figure after Homelander revived him in season 5. However, as the season progressed, he went from being a disappointed and slightly envious father to a potential ally to Homelander. From its early moments, The Boys season 5 subtly revealed how Soldier Boy still has a soft spot for Clara Vought (Stormfront).
Earlier arcs in The Boys made it hard not to believe that, like Homelander, Soldier Boy, too, had nothing but a brief and insignificant love affair with Clara. However, season 5 has now seemingly retconned these aspects of his backstory and established how he actually loved her. It is this love that eventually prompts him to finally give up on his hubris and unrelenting hate for his son, Homelander.
As he himself confesses in The Boys season 5's episode 6, he gives Homelander the V-One and makes him immortal because he believes it is what Clara would have wanted. Homelander, too, wonders why Soldier Boy would suddenly have a change of heart after despising him all this while. Soldier Boy explains himself by simply saying that he "loved her more."
With this massive new development in Soldier Boy's story, it is clear that The Boys has marked the end of an era for his character. In just a few episodes, he has become a far more sympathetic and emotionally layered figure than he initially appeared.
Most aspects of his history with Vought remain intentionally unexplored, but his growth as a character in The Boys season 5 has been incredibly significant. The fact that he even empathizes with Bombsight and strips away his powers to let him spend the rest of his life with Golden Geisha sheds light on the loneliness and helpless longing he feels beneath his hard exterior.
Arguably, the heavy focus on Soldier Boy's development seems to harm The Boys season 5 in more ways than one. It feels a lot like a setup for the upcoming spin-off, Vought Rising. At the same time, though, it is hard not to agree that this development was necessary before Vought Rising's release.
The Change In Soldier Boy’s Story Was Necessary Before His Vought Rising Return
As likable as Soldier Boy might have seemed after his arc in The Boys season 3, there wasn't much to him in terms of long-term character growth. His established hate for Homelander had become a redundant story thread, while one of the few things that made him appealing was his twisted sense of humor.
Even when it comes to his main superpower of blasting energy beams through his chest, the show portrayed it as a destructive gimmick in a rare few scenes.
In The Boys season 5, however, Soldier Boy finally seems to be driven by something that is far greater than him. His emotions get the best of him, and he makes the mistake of giving away V-One to Homelander. However, for once, he steps on his own ego to let someone else take the limelight. His energy beam power is also portrayed as a narrative device for him to free another supe of the same pain and regret he carries with himself.
The Boys' spin-off, Vought Rising, is expected to premiere on Prime Video in 2027.
While it is still a little disappointing that The Boys season 5 is fixated more on setting up Soldier Boy's spin-off instead of wrapping up its own story, the Jensen Ackles character's development was more than necessary before Vought Rising. Hopefully, after so many intriguing developments, the upcoming spin-off will not disappoint and perfectly continue the established change in direction in Soldier Boy's story.
English (US) ·