The Boys’ Dawn of the Seven Parody Takes Shots At… Rogue One?

Warning: Contains SPOILERS for The Boys season 3, episode 1.

No topic is safe from The Boys season 3's satirical poking - not even Star Wars. "Dawn of the Seven" is an in-universe Vought Studios movie introduced by The Boys season 2, and a glorious parody of both the MCU and DCEU superhero franchises. Part of the so-called VCU, "Dawn of the Seven" is a team-up starring Vought's greatest team, and the final battle takes place outside a damaged Seven Tower (à la Marvel's The Avengers). For the most part, however, "Dawn of the Seven" is an absolute rip on the DCEU's big screen struggles.

The "Dawn of the Seven" title and logo both mimic Batman V Superman: Dawn of Justice, the storyboard pitch riffs on Zack Snyder's cinematic style, and Hans Zimmer is mentioned as composing the score (Zimmer worked with Junkie XL on the 2016 DC showdown). In The Boys season 2, Homelander even confirmed a "Joss rewrite," playfully digging at how Joss Whedon took over from Snyder during Justice League post-production. Predictably, season 3 takes the gag to a whole new level. At the "Dawn of the Seven" world premiere, the fictional film's director references "reshoots" before thanking fans for their "ReleaseTheBourkeCut" hashtag. The setup toys gleefully with the whole situation surrounding Zack Snyder's Justice League, and goes so far as to nervously admit "Dawn of the Seven" was almost "dumped on Vought+."

Luke Skywalker and co. might've thought they were safe, but The Boys' cultural humor is as unpredictable as it is indiscriminate. When Adam Bourke and Ashley Barrett are indulging in a sordid bathroom stall rendezvous during The Boys season 3's "Payback," the Vought handler tells her "Dawn of the Seven" director, "You shi**y f**king director - Tony Gilroy had to reshoot all your sh*t!" While Tony Gilroy had no involvement whatsoever with DC's Justice League, the filmmaker was involved with very highly-publicized reshoots for another movie - 2016's Rogue One.

The first of Disney's Star Wars spinoffs, Rogue One was officially directed by Gareth Edwards but wasn't without controversy. Having already burned through several screenwriters and script variations, Rogue One's initial cut did not meet the expectations of Disney and Lucasfilm, who consequently recruited Tony Gilroy to rework the story and oversee reshoots. The full specifics of how much Gilroy altered Rogue One remain muddled to this day, with some reports claiming he directed significant chunks of the finished cut. Whatever the truth, those rumors have been happily seized upon by The Boys, which draws upon Disney's Star Wars nightmare (the first one) as parody material for "Dawn of the Seven."

Switching targets from the MCU and DCEU to Star Wars might seem an abstract leap, but lampooning Rogue One actually makes total sense. The Boys doesn't just take aim at superhero movies, but consumerism culture and corporate shenanigans in general. Somewhat ironically, there are plenty of gags simply about streaming services. Rogue One's production struggles were an early indication of the studio vs. creator divide emerging since Lucasfilm came under Disney's umbrella - a pit that's since swallowed Colin Trevorrow, Rian Johnson, Benioff & Weiss, Lord & Miller, and more. Star Wars might not have superheroes, but it does have the kind of backstage baggage The Boys season 3's "Dawn of the Seven" spoof thrives on.

Another potential explanation is that real life events forced The Boys' hand. Since Homelander initially mentioned a "Joss rewrite" in season 2, darker accusations regarding Joss Whedon's behavior have come to light. Maybe this could be why The Boys season 3 name-drops the other Hollywood director famous for conducting hefty reshoots on a major studio blockbuster instead. Whatever the reason, those familiar with Rogue One's turbulent creation will struggle not to chuckle.