8 MCU Actors Who Also Appeared in The Boys Universe

Eight actors from the Marvel Cinematic Universe have also appeared in an Amazon Prime Video satirical superhero franchise that kicked off in 2019 with The Boys. The Boys will soon be concluding with its fifth and final season, though the franchise will continue to grow with more Gen V, and the upcoming spinoffs Vought Rising and The Boys: Mexico. The franchise pokes fun at other superhero series, including the MCU, and this is even more brilliant given the fact that several actors have appeared in both.

While the animated The Boys: Diabolical series has included MCU voice and live-action actors such as Fred Tatasciore, Gary Anthony Williams, Jason Isaacs, Kumail Nanjiani, Awkwafina, and Don Cheadle, the series is not technically considered canon to the live-action shows. Eight MCU actors have appeared in The Boys franchise’s canon projects, including some surprising additions and some major stars. As The Boys franchise and the MCU continue to grow, this list may expand exponentially.

8) Karl Urban as Skurge the Executioner and Billy Butcher

At the center of The Boys is the leader of the titular resistance team fighting against the world’s corrupt Supes, Billy Butcher. Karl Urban has portrayed Butcher throughout the parent show’s duration, but he appeared in the MCU beforehand, playing the Asgardian Skurge in Thor: Ragnarok in 2017. Skurge was manipulated by Hela (Cate Blanchett) into becoming her executioner, but eventually turned against her. Butcher, on the other hand, has seen the opposite transformation, going from hero to villain, even gaining cancerous powers of his own, setting him up for an intense ride in The Boys season 5.

7) Erin Moriarty as Hope Shlottman and Annie January’s Starlight

Netflix’s Defenders Saga was confirmed to be canon to the MCU in early 2024, which meant that Jessica Jones was integrated into the MCU’s official timeline. Surprisingly, several actors from Jessica Jones have appeared in The Boys, but Erin Moriarty is one of the most prominent. In the MCU, Moriarty played the troubled Hope Shlottman, who tragically fell under the control of Kilgrave (David Tennant), but she is far more powerful in The Boys. Moriarty plays the Supe Annie January, aka Starlight, who initially becomes a member of the Seven, but later joins the Boys as a freedom fighter.

6) Colby Minifie as Robyn and Ashley Barrett

Colby Minifie also bridged the gap between Netflix’s Jessica Jones and The Boys, as she appeared as Jessica Jones’ (Krysten Ritter) neighbor, Robyn, in the former, and stars as the de jure CEO of Vought International, Ashley Barrett, in the latter. Robyn became embroiled in Jones’ fight against Kilgrave in after the villain kills her brother in Jessica Jones season 1, but has a much more prominent role in The Boys. She rose through the ranks of Vought, but was eventually usurped by Homelander, pushing her to take Compound V for herself, leaving her fate going into season 5 uncertain.

5) Jessica Hecht as Audrey Eastman and Carol Mannheim

Jessica Jones provided several actors for The Boys to poach for very different roles. In the former, Jessica Hecht – best known for portraying Susan Bunch in Friends – played Audrey Eastman, a woman who blamed superpowered individuals for her mother’s death during the Battle of New York, causing her to attempt to assassinate Jessica Jones. In The Boys, however, Hecht played a very different character, Carol Mannheim, the outreach director for the Church of the Collective, who acts as the Deep’s (Chase Crawford) therapist, and helps him find a wife, feigning his redemption so he can rejoin the Seven.

4) Da’Vinchi as Eric Ambrose and Anthony

During Jessica Jones’ hunt for Dr. Karl Malus (Callum Keith Rennie) in Jessica Jones season 2, she tracks down Eric Ambrose – whom Malus had experimented on – to get information out of his father. Eric was played by Haitian-American actor Da’Vinchi, who also portrayed a character by the name of Anthony in The Boys. Anthony was a childhood friend of Hughie Campbell (Jack Quaid) who reunited with Hughie and met Annie January in a bar in season 1. Both Eric Ambrose and Anthony were minor roles for Da’Vinchi, but he is yet another Jessica Jones alum included in The Boys.

3) Clancy Brown as Ray Schoonover, Surtur, and Richard “Rich Brink” Brinkerhoff

Clancy Brown is considered one of the greats of his generation, so he was a huge get for both the MCU and for The Boys spinoff, Gen V. In the Defenders Saga’s The Punisher series, Brown portrayed Colonel Ray Schoonover, aka the Blacksmith, who had a dark history with Frank Castle (Jon Bernthal), culminating in his demise. In Gen V, Brown played acclaimed Godolkin University professor Richard “Rich Brink” Brinkerhoff, who was burned to a crisp by Luke Riordan’s Golden Boy (Patrick Schwarzenegger) because of his association with the Woods. Brown also voiced Surtur in Thor: Ragnarok, who destroyed Asgard.

2) Giancarlo Esposito as Seth Voelker’s Sidewinder and Stan Edgar

After years of fan-casting and speculation, Giancarlo Esposito finally joined the MCU in 2025, debuting as Seth Voelker’s Sidewinder, the king of the Serpent Society, in Captain America: Brave New World. Esposito is expected to return in future MCU projects, so he will continue to appear in the MCU as well as The Boys and its spinoffs as Stan Edgar, the former CEO of Vought International. Stan Edgar has appeared in every season of The Boys, and recently showed up in Gen V, continuing his fight against Homelander. This will come to a head in The Boys season 5.

1) Tilda Swinton as the Ancient One and Ambrosius

I think it’s safe to say nobody expected acclaimed legend Tilda Swinton to join The Boys, especially as the voice of the octopus Ambrosius, who falls in love with the Deep. Ambrosius’ death scene was even more tragic thanks to Swinton’s dedicated vocal performance, while she has also leant her talents to several MCU projects. In the MCU, Swinton has played the Ancient One – the former Sorcerer Supreme – since Doctor Strange in 2016. Since then, she has shown up in Avengers: Endgame and the animated What If…? series, and the door is open for her to return in the MCU’s future, though it’s unlikely we’ll ever get Ambrosius back in The Boys, tragically.

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