Butcher quotes from The Boys

I don't remember, but my mom said that when I was born, I almost blinded the doctor. So I had powers from the start. Why?

Hughie

No. No, I'm just curious.

Mmm. Do you mind if we just… not talk about hero stuff tonight?

Hughie

Yeah, yeah. Bad day at work?

Yeah, it's an understatement. You know, there's this beach in the Bahamas where the sand is pink. Like, cotton candy pink.

Hughie

What's it called?

Pink Sands. [Hughie laughs] It's not the most creative name, but… Let's just go.

Hughie

Yeah. No, I can, uh… learn how to play the steel drum. You can get cornrows.

[chuckles] How about tonight?

Hughie

[snaps fingers] Book that ticket. [pause] Are… Are we talking about this?

I don't know. I… I just know that, for me, New York has been such an endless shit show...

…Except for you. Somehow, in the middle of it all… you found me.

Hughie? I thought that was you. [chuckles] Oh. Oh, I apologize. I didn't mean to interrupt.

No. Hi, I'm Annie.

Billy. [shakes Annie's hand] Old mate of Hughie's.

[to Hughie] Boy, you really–you have a lot of friends showing up here.

Hughie

Yeah. Seems like it.

Well, well, well.

Hughie

Butcher…

She's quite tasty up close and personal. I get what you see in her.

Hughie

That wasn't what–

I thought we had an understanding.

Hughie

We do. We do. It… It's not what–

Not what it looks like? 'Cause from where I'm sittin', it looks like you've got your tongue halfway down the opposition's throat.

Hughie

She is not the opposition. She's a good person, okay? I mean, she could help us.

Help us?

Hughie

Yeah.

And what d'you think she's gonna do when she finds out you murdered Translucent?

Hughie

Hey, can we talk?

That's what we're doin', innit?

Hughie

No, I mean–

There ain't no secrets here, son. Spit it out.

Stop being an asshole. Just talk to the guy.

Hughie doesn't mind. Do you, Hughie?

Hughie

[pause] Okay, fine. I don't think I can do this anymore.

Do what?

Hughie

This. I mean, Vought–whatever with Kimiko–it's awful, and you gotta stop it, but I can't.

Right. You just wanna kick back, drink a few Mai Tais, and let us do all the work. Is that it?

Hughie

I managed to go my whole life without seeing someone die horribly, and now I'm up to about a half dozen, so I think I'm good.

Please. You're a fuckin' killer, Hughie. Just like the rest of us. Now, why don't you stop pissin' around and tell everybody what this is really all about? Yeah?

Hughie

Fine. Annie, okay?

[sighs and facepalms] Fuck.

Hughie

It's about Annie.

[claps] Fuckin' finally! He's been sneakin' off to give her one at Lincoln Grand!

Hughie

You've been following me?

Like you gave me a choice.

Hughie

She doesn't know anything, okay?! I'm not gonna tell her anything! We'll just–

Just what? Fuck off to Epcot? The Hamptons? Maybe pump out a few flyin' babies?!

Hughie

No. I… I don't know!

No, you don't know! 'Cause you ain't thinkin', except with your dick.

Hughie

You're wrong about her.

That bitch is fuckin' playin' you, and you're too fuckin' blind to see it!

Hughie

So better to be loyal to a dead woman who doesn't know and doesn't care? How's that working out for you?!

Don't want none, fuck off.

I'm here about your wife.

Mallory

I believe this was a few days after you met Homelander at that Christmas party?

Mallory

She was alone with him for three hours.

Mallory

Not long after that, Rebecca went missing and has remained so ever since. One way or another, Mr. Butcher, I believe Homelander was involved.

Homelander… But he's a fuckin' superhero.

Mallory

You wouldn't believe what they get up to.

[pause] Who the fuck are you?

Mallory

My name is Mallory. [shows Butcher her CIA badge] I'm the person who can get you payback.

Mallory

William.

What are you lookin' at out there?

Mallory

Eastern meadowlarks. It was either bird-watching or alcoholism, so… birds. [lifts binoculars from her eyes] I thought we agreed that you were never gonna come out here.

Yeah, well, you taught me a thing or two about broken promises, didn't ya? This is Hugh Campbell. We're working with M.M. and Frenchie. I got the Boys back together.

Mallory

[to Hughie] Grace Mallory. I'm the founder of your little club. [to Butcher] So, let me hear it.

I need your help.

Mallory

Sorry, I can't. I'm hoping to photograph a snowy owl in the dunes.

Look… I didn't wanna come here, but I need your help. And you're gonna fuckin' help.

Mallory

Why's that?

[gets in front of Mallory] Because you owe me. You fuckin' owe me, goddammit.

Mallory

There's simply nothing else to say. I can't help you.

Well, you're gonna have to do better than that.

Mallory

Do I? Why?

'Cause you made me a promise!

Mallory

But then my grandchildren got incinerated. Tends to change one's perspective. There weren't even teeth left; Lamplighter had burnt them alive so thoroughly. Well, I think I've had enough sun for one day. Pleasure meeting you, Hugh… Butcher.

Well, what about what you've done?

Mallory

What I've done? To who?

To me, goddammit. To me. You trained me up, manipulated me, aimed me at Homelander like a fuckin' howitzer! And then when it didn't suit you anymore, you just threw me away!

Mallory

And not a day goes by that I don't regret it.

Day late, dollar short, love. Now, I'm gonna finish what you started… and I need your help. Please.

Mallory

You can leave with something if you never come back, and you keep your goddamn promise this time. [pause; Butcher nods] Madelyn Stillwell.

Vought's VP?

Mallory

Homelander's her main account.

Yeah, that ain't news.

Mallory

No, but this is: They have a… what shall we say, a very special relationship. Complicated, intimate, hard to quantify.

And you know this how?

Mallory

Still have a few fingers in a few pies. I don't know if Homelander has a weakness, but if he does… she'll know it.

[beat] Goodbye, Grace.

Mallory

You wanna kill yourself, that's your right. I won't stop you! But, Billy… not the others! [to Hughie] Vengeance isn't a path to glory, Hugh. It's a one-way ticket to a dead end, looking at fucking birds.

Hughie

How are we gonna get the guys back?

We're on our own. We've gotta get to Stillwell before the walls close in.

Hughie

Who gives a fuck about Stillwell?! We have to go back for them!

You don't get it, Hughie. We got about a couple hours before they find us, and that's if we're lucky. We gotta hit back and hit back now.

Hughie

You're abandoning them. I mean, they all… They risked their… Mother's Milk has a daughter.

They'd want us to finish the job.

Hughie

Your job! Your job, not theirs! It's all about Homelander, isn't it?

And A-Train. This is your fuckin' shit, too, Hughie. I promised you payback, didn't I?

Hughie

Mallory give you the same speech back in the day?

Yeah. Yeah, she did, but she broke her promise. I'm keepin' mine.

Hughie

[laughs in disbelief] I'm so fucking stupid. You never cared about me… or Robin, did you? I was just useful to you.

Fuck, Hughie. Of course you're useful. I mean, that's why you're here, innit? Now, we just gotta take one more step… Yeah? Come on.

Hughie

No. We have to save them.

For fuck's sakes, Hughie. We don't have time for this shit right now, okay? We get Stillwell. Now, get in the fuckin' car!

Hughie

Then what? Becca comes back from the dead? Robin, too? This is never gonna stop! It's just gonna be more blood and… awfulness!

[gets in Hughie's face] That's the fuckin' game. If you don't like to play, why did you join the fuckin' team?

Hughie

Mallory's right. You're just gonna drag us all down with you. Not me. Not anymore.

You're a fuckin' pathetic cunt and an insult to Robin's memory.

Hughie

I think I'm doing this for her.

…Goodbye, Hughie.

Homelander

Billy Butcher. You don't mind if I call you Billy, right? You are pretty darn impressive. I mean, especially for, you know… one of you. See, even now, most people standing where you are would be pissing their pants terrified. But you… Sure, your heart's pounding, but you're not afraid. It's anger. That's a new one for me.

Homelander, will you please take the baby upstairs?

Homelander

All because of your lovely wife, Becca. Right? Okay, let's cut the bullshit, huh? You know that we, uh… [makes humping gesture] Bro, not my fault, okay? She came on to me. It happens…

Will you stop?

Homelander

…you know, it's–it's the fame. They get crushes. There's nothing I can do about it. But what I will tell you is, she was a hell of a lay. [laughs] She came three times, eh? Three times. [places Teddy in his crib] Alright, little man, have a little lie-down. Good boy.

I want you to take him out of here.

Homelander

[to Stillwell] Yeah, I hear you. [sighs; to Butcher] But that's not really it. No, no, no, no, no. No, it's more than just that. [pause] You think I'm responsible for her death, don't you? So now you have a hostage that–that I care about, right? Someone I love. So, what's your plan… from here? What do you want? Do you want a confession, or… What's your endgame?

I'm just gonna hurt you. I mean, really fuckin' hurt you… and that'll be good enough for me.

Homelander

So, you–you don't really want anything, per se? You just–You wanna blow her up in front of me, right? [laughing] Wow, fuck! Uh… [stammers] You are dark, and I kinda like it.

[to Homelander] Will you please take Teddy upstairs?

Homelander

[to Stillwell] It's okay. [to Butcher] Just answer one question for me. Just one: How do you know? How do you know? I mean, you must have some rock-solid proof, right? That it was actually me who killed your wife. You must have that, right? So what is it? Share. We're all very interested. [pause; Butcher says nothing] Now's not the time to be strong and silent. Go for it. [beat; Butcher remains silent] Are you telling me that this whole thing is–is based on fucking feelings? On a hunch?

Will you please take him upstairs?!

Homelander

A little bit–Madelyn, hold on!

TAKE HIM UPSTAIRS!

Homelander

SHUT THE FUCK UP!

Homelander

Wakey-wakey. Hey, buddy. You were out for quite a while. You can thank me for saving you sometime later, but for now, time to get up. Come on, you're gonna love this. Come on.

Ryan

Mom!

Homelander

Wow, look at this handsome devil. Hey, pal. You know who I am?

Ryan

Homelander.

Homelander

[laughs] Yeah, that's right, but… you know who else?

Ryan

No.

Becca?

Homelander

Huh. Mommy didn't tell you. Well… I'm your father. And we are a family.

Alright. Easy does it, lads. Easy does it. [points at the guard] Like, I tried to tell this cunt... I'm with that lot, yeah?

What the fuck are you wearin'?

That is a good question.

Hughie

[to Frenchie] You called him?

Frenchie

I'm sorry, Petit Hughie. It's not a game now. We need a real captain.

[to Hughie] Frenchie's right. This is a fuckin' mess, son. We got a Supe terrorist, Rayner's blown her canister, and we're the most wanted cunts in the country. But don't you worry… Daddy's home.

Hughie

Where are you going?

Goin' to meet a contact.

Hughie

Who?

Someone who can help us find this Supe terrorist cunt.

Hughie

Who is the contact? What is their actual name?

You'll love it.

Hughie

No, I won't. I won't love it, I never love it. I never fucking love it!

No! No, Butcher! No! Easy! Easy, Butcher!

Hughie

The CIA would've locked him up in some black box forever, and she never would've seen her brother again!

Easy! Both of you, please. Not now.

Right. [pause; points at Hughie] You… fuck off. The rest of you, with me.

Well, come on, don't piss about. We ain't got all night. [pause] The fuck you waitin' for? [beat; to M.M.] Are you tellin' me that her family is worth more to you than you seein' your own?

No, I'm not. But Kimiko is one of us. I'll find another way.

[to Frenchie] I suppose you agree, don't ya?! Since your tongue is halfway down her arse! Jesus, it's like Hughie's infected you both with a raging case of vagina. [pause] Becca's alive.

Hughie

What?

She's alive, and Vought's holdin' her captive somewhere.

Butcher, if you–

No, I'm not stark ravin', alright? I fuckin' saw her. She had a little boy with her, eh… The spittin' image of Homelander. I thought he just wanted to humiliate me, show me what he'd done to my girl before he gave me the good news. Then, I woke up three hours later in a Tony fuckin' Cicero's. God knows why. I gotta find her, and I gotta get her the fuck out of there… and I need your help to do it.

Are you fucking with us?

I find the terrorist for Mallory, she finds Becca for me. That's the deal I made. I know what I've done to you, alright? And by rights, you should tell me to fuck off. But still… I'm askin'.

Hughie

Uh, hey. Is this you? You did it. We did it! Um, call me. Call me back when you get a chance.

Did what? [beat; watches the news for a moment] You did this?

Hughie

Uh, yeah. Starlight did mostly, I'm pretty sure. But I just gave her an old alley-oop.

Hughie… HUGHIE, YES! [hugs Hughie and lifts him up] HUGHIE! Dude, look what you fuckin' did! Oh, my God!

You lads touchin' your tips?

Look at what the kid just did.

Hughie

Me and Starlight, but yeah.

Frenchie

Petit Hughie?!

The fuckin' kid!

[laughing] Oh, shit!

Frenchie

Yes!

Nice one.

That's all you got? We've been trying to do this shit for years, Vought's finally fuckin' going down, the kid did it... and "Nice one"?!

Alright, real nice one.

Hughie

You can't even give me this, can you? Not one goddamn win.

I'll tell ya what. When we're all done here, I'll buy you a nice, big family-size bottle of top-shelf lube, and I'll tickle your balls till you beg me to stop. And even then, I won't. I just won't do it. But right now, we got a Supe terrorist below deck and shit could go sideways just like… [snaps his fingers] So all of ya, keep your fuckin' eyes on the ball, yeah?

Frenchie

Don't worry about him.

Yeah, fuck him. You did great.

[spits out whale blood] Fuckin' diabolical! Where's Hughie?!

Hughie! Oh, geez. You alright? Come on, son. We gotta leg it. Deep's here, and The Seven won't be too far behind.

Hughie

Um, you know what? You know, you guys go ahead. You guys go ahead. I'm good.

Eh? What?

Hughie

Just gonna sit here and wait, if you don't mind.

What the fuck are you waitin' for?!

Hughie

[sighs] My second wind.

Alright, son. Come on. [tries to get Hughie up] Come on.

Hughie

GET YOUR FUCKING HANDS OFF OF ME!

Geez! Alright, fine. Suit yourself. [pause; to M.M. and Frenchie as he gets out] C'mon, let's go!

Whoa, we can't leave the kid, man.

Pinocchio is stayin' put. Have at it.

Hey, the kid's fallin' apart. You know that, right?

Well, what'd you expect? He's a fuckin' civilian.

No, no, no. It's not just him. It's all of us.

Frenchie

[to Hughie] Move the feet. Just move the feet, come on. Move.

We're at our breaking point–at each other's throats–and you keep pushin' us and pushin'. It's like–

Right over the fuckin' finish line. We just need to keep our shit together a little bit longer, okay? We hand that cunt over, and I get Becca, and you get your girls.

Butcher–

We're right fuckin'–

Butcher! Butcher, we're right there. Hughie's not gonna make it. And you need that kid more than any one of us. He's your canary.

My canary?

You let your canary die, how you gonna know when you've gone too far?

Oh… I mean, what a load of bollocks. [pause; looks briefly at Hughie] Hell, I tried, alright? The kid doesn't want a part of me, so fuck him.

Hughie

You got my message. Annie, I–

Homelander

Oh, come on! You gotta be fucking kidding me! This guy? Again?!

I did not know…

Homelander

Shut it. What, do you got rocks in your fucking head? Come here. Alright, I'd like you to do something for me, okay? Kill him.

N–No, wait. [stuttering] He… He–He's wanted. Shouldn't we... take him to the police?

Homelander

Yes, he is. Yes, we should. Kill him. Right now. [to Hughie] Chicks, right, Hughie? [pause; to Annie] Oh, for God's sakes. Come on, it's easy. Hands in the air, like you just don't care. [pulls Annie's fists up; chuckles] Kill. Do it. [beat; Annie is still silent] More incentive? Okay. You kill him or I'll fucking kill you both. Do it.

Oi, cunt!

Homelander

William. [laughs] What a surprise! Hey… You know, I had a great breakfast with your wife this morning. Pancakes. Mmmm, de-licious.

Yeah? Eat this, motherfucker.

Mallory

I ever tell you about my recurring dream? I'm on stage alone at Carnegie Hall. The audience is made up of every poor bastard who got killed by the superheroes.

What are they doin'?

Mallory

Nothing. They're all just watching me. Waiting for me to do something.

We hit a dead end on Rayner. I'm sorry.

Mallory

Christ, I don't wanna hear sorry. Sorry's not an option. We can't have anonymous skull-exploding assassins walking around. What if they hit the Speaker next? Or the President?

Liberty?

Mallory

You mentioned her before. Second-tier Supe, active in the '70s. She was all over Susan's private server. Get Marvin to talk to this Liberty. Address on the back, North Carolina.

Alright. We'll see what we can find.

Mallory

Wait. [Butcher turns around] I found Becca. Or at least, our best guess where she is. Vought facility, armed to the teeth. Won't be easy.

We had a deal. I didn't come through.

Mallory

Jesus, Butcher. I'm just giving it to you. It's my fault you stopped searching for her. I put a target on Homelander's back and pointed you right at him. I didn't know Becca was still… It'd be good to have one less person in that audience staring at me.

You're late. Where's the kid? Babe, we gotta get in the truck or we'll miss our chance.

Becca

I'm–I'm not leaving.

What are you talkin' about? Of course you are. Grab the kid and let's go.

Becca

You don't really want Ryan to come with us.

Of course I do. I said I'd take him, didn't I?

Becca

And I wanted to believe you.

Then, believe me. Now, come on. We've gotta get a shift on.

Becca

Listen, if the three of us leave, you're gonna find a way to get rid of him. I know it. It–It won't be in an obvious way. And it won't be right away, but you will.

No, Becca. No.

Becca

Billy, I know you. I know you better than anybody, and I saw it in your face last night. I see it now.

He's a billion-dollar piece of Vought property. They are not gonna let him go. You and me, Becca. You and me, we've got a chance. Babe, it's Ryan they care about, not us.

Becca

Yeah, and then what? And then Vought raises him without a mother, right? Then, we have Homelander all over again. Then, there's two fucking assholes in this world.

We could disappear, alright? Just start again, start a new family.

Becca

I have a son!

He's a fuckin' Supe freak! [pause; sighs] Fuck. I'm… Listen, I… I'm sorry, I didn't mean that. Becca… Becca, please come with me.

Becca

You were wrong about me. Do you know that? You put me on this pedestal, and the truth is, I never knew how to save you. You were always one bad day away from pounding someone to death in a parking lot.

That's not true.

Becca

Billy… He raped me, and when I found out I was pregnant, I went to Vought. I didn't come to you. I didn't come to you because I was scared. 'Cause I knew that you'd chase after him and you would seek revenge and it wouldn't be good for anybody!

I love you.

Becca

[starts crying] I love you. But the hate that you carry and the warpath that you're on, it started so long before me. I can't.

Becs, I'm not leavin' without you!

Becca

You have to go, please. [holds up a tracker] Every guard in this goddamn place is gonna be here in sixty seconds. You have to go. Please. I'm sorry. [sobbing] I'm so sorry.