The first three episodes of the much-anticipated Gen V Season 2are finally available with a Prime subscription. Picking up after the events of The Boys Season 4, the college-set superhero drama resolved the cliffhanger from the first season, in which Marie battled it out with Homelander, and she and her friends were locked up. Aside from the late Chance Perdomo, who died in a motorcycle crash last year, there was one noticeable star who wasn’t present, and it was Patrick Schwarzenegger. On that note, Schwarzenegger weighed in on whether he’ll ever appear in Season 2.
Schwarzenegger recurred in Gen V Season 1 as Godolkin senior Luke Riordan/Golden Boy, who has superhuman strength and can engulf his body in flames. Luke memorably died in the first episode (which was just one WTF moment from the show), but he continued to appear throughout the season via flashbacks and hallucinations. Schwarzenegger seemed to make a solid impression on viewers with his performance. Alas, the actor confirmed to Screen Rant he will not appear inSeason 2, but he has a good reason why:
No, I wish, but I was, we were actually filming White Lotus at the same time that they were filming Gen V. So it didn’t work out. But maybe season three or some other time.
It’s not surprising that Patrick Scharzenegger wasn’t able to make it work, considering The White Lotus Season 3 was filming in Thailand. I’d say the situation worked out for him as well. Schwarzenegger starred in the Emmy-winning anthology series as Saxon Ratliff and, even though the brotherly love story got a bit weird, he received praise for his performance. As a fan, I’m still disappointed Schwarzenegger won’t be in Gen V Season 2 but, at the very least, it sounds like he’s not opposed to returning at some point.
However, Gen V hasn’t been renewed as of this writing and, since Season 2 just premiered, it might be a while until any news is announced on that front. However, The Boyshas proven to be a force to be reckoned with as an IP for Prime Video. So I wouldn’t be surprised if the streamer wanted to keep the franchise going. Of course, even if the green light was given, other logistics would have to be worked out for Golden Boy’s return like scheduling for Schwarzenegger and a solid narrative entry point for the character’s comeback.
Despite expressing interest in playing Golden Boy again, Schwarzenegger recently revealed how tough working on Gen V really is. He opened up about one hard part of production that should be taught in acting classes, which is working with green or blue screens. Actors have indeed spoken about the challenges of working on effects-heavy productions, but I’d say Schwarzenegger looked like a pro.
Right now, I’m excited to see the rest of Gen V Season 2, including seeing what other changes are in store for Marie. If anything, fans can see Luke/Golden Boy in the first season on Prime Video, and new episodes hit the streamer on Wednesdays.
