An interesting fan theory suggests The Boys season 3 will feature a prominent twist revolving around Homelander and Black Noir. The Boys, an Amazon Original, is adapted from the comic book of the same name and follows the eponymous team of vigilantes as they try to combat a corrupt team of superheroes, "The Seven." The satirical black comedy has garnered critical acclaim for its humor and cast performances, with filming for The Boys season 3 already underway.
The Boys season 2 culminated in key events for both Black Noir (Nathan Mitchell) and Homelander (Anthony Starr). Black Noir is left in a vegetative state following his confrontation with Queen Meave (Dominique McElligott) after Meave used his nut allergy against him. Despite being physically fine, Homelander ends season 2 in an even worse state. The final scene of the season shows Homelander psychologically broken following the crippling of his Nazi girlfriend Stormfront, the concession of Ryan to Billy Butcher (Karl Urban), and a perceived betrayal at the hands of Meave.
These events set The Boys' season 3 up to align with one theory that hints at a big twist for the series. This popular theory (via Reddit) predicts that Vought CEO Stan Edgar (Giancarlo Esposito) will clone Superman (or Superboy) Homelander and use him as a stand-in for the comatose Black Noir. The theory also states that Black Noir will eventually wake up as he does in the comics, resulting in a titanic showdown between Homelander, his clone, and the original Black Noir.
The theory suggests that following the events of The Boys season 2, Homelander begins to lose his grip on reality. His descent into madness forces Stan Edgar's hand, who needs a failsafe installed if he can no longer control Homelander. However, Edgar cannot simply unveil his new creation, and as a result, he hides the Homelander clone by having him pose as Black Noir, claiming he is healed. This is a tidy theory, as the clone posing as the powerful Black Noir would be impervious to almost all harm in the same way Noir was, and also allows Edgar to show The Seven as a unified front, with the return of Starlight (Erin Moriarty) complimenting this facade.
The theory then states that after this, season 3's events will initially play out as expected following foreshadowed events. Victoria Neuman (Claudia Doumit) will continue her ascent to the presidency, while Soldier Boy, teased in season 2, will appear to torment Homelander. The showrunners will also likely have some fun using the fake Black Noir in several scenes before Meave and Starlight realize something is amiss. The fact that false Black Noir does not remember their season 2 confrontation will be a big red flag for the heroines, forcing them to investigate and find out the truth.
Simultaneously, the clone will begin posing as the real Homelander, causing the Superman parody to spiral further into madness. Conveniently, at this point, Black Noir will awake from his coma and reveal the extent of Edgar's deception, culminating in a brutal fight between the three "Supes." With season 2 seemingly moving away from the original comic book's Black Noir origin story, this chain of events would allow a seamless way for the showrunners to reincorporate it into the series. This narrative would also introduce a character that can actually go toe-to-toe with Homelander in combat, which is something every The Boys fan would love to see.