Eric Kripke, series creator and showrunner of The Boys, discusses why Billy Butcher (Karl Urban) experiences hallucinations in season 4. In the new season, Butcher is at his lowest point, with only six months to live, and has been expelled from the Boys by their new leader, Mother’s Milk (Laz Alonso).

He’s also battling to uphold his vow to his late wife Becca (Shantel VanSanten) to keep her kid Ryan (Cameron Crovetti) safe. As Butcher faces these challenges, he is haunted by Becca hallucinations.

In an interview with TVLine, Kripke revealed the creative decision behind Butcher’s hallucinations and bringing Becca back to the series in this manner. Becca did not appear in season 3 of The Boys after her death in the season 2 finale, but she was mentioned several times, and the weight of her loss and the promise Butcher made to her lingered over the entire season. See Kripke’s explanation of Becca’s reappearance through hallucinations below:

One, I love Shantel, and I’ll work with her every chance I get. We really wanted to present a Butcher at war with himself this season. He’s only got six months to live. He needs to decide, is he going to fulfill his promise to Becca, or is he going to give into all of his worst impulses? So we thought to really dramatize that promise that he made, to sort of bring her back as sort of the angel on his shoulder that he’s conflicted by, was a good way to show his inner turmoil.

Can “Becca” Save Butcher From Himself?

“Becca” Has So Far Steered Him Away From Doing Anything Terrible.

Despite being at his lowest point, Butcher is ultimately making better choices than he did in the majority of episodes in the previous seasons, and that’s largely thanks to his conversations with “Becca.”

The hallucinations of Becca have so far prevented Butcher from giving in to his worst impulses in season 4. She talked him out of betraying Hughie Campbell (Jack Quaid), the only true friend he has left. Her influence and the promise he made her also convinced him to not go through with drugging Ryan as he and new The Boys character CIA agent Joe Kessler (Jeffrey Dean Morgan) had planned. Despite being at his lowest point, Butcher is ultimately making better choices than he did in the majority of episodes in the previous seasons, and that’s largely thanks to his conversations with “Becca.”

While she is the angel on his shoulder, Butcher’s old friend Kessler is already becoming the devil on his other shoulder. Giving Butcher fentanyl to drug Ryan is only the beginning of his negative influence. Kessler has no moral qualms about what it will take to defeat Homelander (Antony Starr) and other Supes before it’s too late for humanity to fight back. This is the same mindset Butcher has had in the past, and the longer Ryan remains at Homelander’s side, the more desperate Butcher will become.

Becca clearly means more to Butcher than Kessler does. Seeing her and communicating with her through hallucinations serves as a continual reminder of her and the commitment he made. In season 4 of The Boys, Kessler may be able to persuade Butcher to commit a heinous act in order to fulfill his promise and protect Ryan. Becca may not be able to save Butcher from himself.