The Boys showrunner Eric Kripke reveals which scene terrified him the most. Based on the comic book of the same name by Garth Ennis and Darick Robertson, the Amazon Prime Video series follows superpowered individuals who frequently abuse their abilities in horrific ways and the eponymous vigilantes that try to stop them. One exception is the character of Annie (Erin Moriarty). Better known by the superhero alias of Starlight, Annie serves as something of an audience surrogate in the first season and genuinely tries to do the right thing.

This is particularly evident in the first episode of the series when Starlight joins The Seven, becoming its newest members and expressing an apparent eagerness to work with her fellow superheroes. Annie’s expectations don’t match up to reality, ultimately, and one pivotal scene sets the stage for the character’s arc throughout The Boys.

Related: The Boys Season 2 Fixes The Comics' Becca Butcher Mistake

Speaking with Screenwriters’ Festival Online, Kripke was candid about the challenging process that went into the confrontation between Starlight and The Deep (Chace Crawford). The scene culminates with Deep sexually assaulting Starlight, a storyline that Kripke admits was difficult to translate to the screen. You can read his comments below:

I wanted to get it right. I had a lot of conversations with a lot of women, some of which were very painful. And I did my absolute best to get the f– out of the way, and just let them speak, and not try to steer it one way or another. And then, ultimately, kind of, y’know, boil it down to Starlight’s experience, both in that moment, and then in the aftermath of that moment. Then when it came time to loop in Erin, and then Chace… we went through that process all over again. Because the actors actually have to live in and play it. And so, I’ll say this: I’ve never worked so hard or stressed so much about a scene in my life before or since. Because if I got that wrong, it’s not just that it would fail as a scene, it would be hurtful. And I felt that pressure and responsibility all throughout.

Elisabeth Shue as Madelyn Stillwell, Chase Crawford as The Deep And Erin Moriarty as Starlight in The Boys

The care that went into adapting the scene is evident in how it drastically improves the original storyline. Homelander and Black Noir are involved in Starlight’s assault in the comics, and the horrendous act is mainly displayed for shock value. This is not present in the on-screen version, which alters Homelander and Black Noir's personalities to an extent. Crucially, it also allows the assault to take place off-screen. Viewers witness Starlight’s growing fear and then, later, her indignation. But this is achieved without potentially eroticizing or glorifying a fundamentally traumatic event.

Another element to consider is that Starlight and Deep have barely interacted for the past two seasons. After she gets a measure of revenge against Deep by calling him out publicly and leading to his demotion in The Seven, the characters go their separate ways. Unlike shows like Gossip Girl, which have fashioned attempted rapists into romantic leads, the adaptation has largely viewed Deep with mockery and, by the end of season 2, he’s revealed to fundamentally the same cluelessly callous person despite expressing some surface level of remorse. For a show about superpowers, The Boys depicted a sensitive topic with much-needed realism.

More: How The Boys Season 2 Mocks Batman v Superman

Source: Screenwriters’ Festival Online