Supervillains are a dime a dozen, but super antiheroes might be even more dangerous, as both The Suicide Squad and The Boys have shown us. Both the 2021 film and the hit Prime Video original show follow a group of compromised superhumans who either unaware of the harm they cause, or they are fighting for their own lot in a confusing world, or they are just arguably evil.
With the launch of spinoff DCEU show Peacemaker, one of The Suicide Squad’s secondary characters gets a moment in the spotlight — and that made us realize just how many similarities there are between Peacemaker (John Cena) and the leader of The Seven, Homelander (Kiwi actor Antony Starr). And given that Foxtel (which has Peacemaker available to stream) has teamed up with Prime Video App (where you can catch The Boys), we thought about what would happen if these two antiheroes teamed up.
Hear us out: This unlikely duo would be unstoppable. But would they be a force of good or evil? Well, it depends on whether Peacemaker’s warped idealism reaches Homelander, or if the latter corrupts The Suicide Squad’s assassin with good intentions.
They Can Bond Over Their Pasts
Homelander has a habit of being just a touch sadistic and megalomaniacal, having stabbed his fellow Seven members in the back — or just flat-out killing his co-workers, as he did with Madelyn Stillwell. But maybe he could create a true alliance with Peacemaker, if they bonded over their similarities?
Both characters are kind of inverse Captain America or Superman. They are the corrupted counterpoints to these figures, patriotic and super powerful, but having turned to the wrong side. While Homelander grew up in a lab to gain superhuman powers like heat vision, super strength, and flight, Peacemaker was also trained to be a powerful fighting machine from birth.
Peacemaker’s father, Auggie Smith, was a neo Nazi who trained him to be a killer, a past that he struggles to overcome. So too is Homelander stuck in being a near-deity, created by a company for profit. These two could find solace and friendship in each other, and potentially team up against the forces that tried to control them. Both are egotistical in defense, and they have a lot of demons to battle. Perhaps they could battle them together?
Their Powers Aren’t Matched, But Maybe Their Morals Could Be
Homelander is near-undefeatable, but Peacemaker packs a punch too. As played by John Cena, he’s a powerful hunk of meat who may not be a superhuman, but maybe his vigilante beliefs could rub off on Homelander? It’s easy to see Homelander as pure evil, but perhaps there is something underneath that Peacemaker could pull out. In an interview last year, The Boys showrunner Erik Kripke said that Antony Starr approaches Homelander with empathy, and chooses to believe he’s not a villain, but “misunderstood”. Maybe all Homelander needs is to be understood by someone like Peacemaker.
Then again, Homelander is a slippery beast and a master manipulator. And Peacemaker isn’t exactly known for being the sharpest tool in the shed. We’d love to see Peacemaker and Homelander run a vigilante service, but it’s just as likely that Homelander would corrupt the whole thing and use it for his own agenda. Either way, it’d be fun to watch. But for now, you can find the two antiheroes in the one place, now that the Prime Video App is available on Foxtel: Back-to-back watch party, anyone?
Editor’s note: This is post is sponsored by Foxtel.
