Two crucial scenes from the teaser film of The Boys season 4 provide credence to a major Black Noir replacement notion that was beginning to take shape. Even though Homelander brutally murdered the original Black Noir in the climax of The Boys season 3, the appearance of the silent Seven Supe is confirmed for The Boys season 4. In order to conceal Noir’s death from the public, Vought has recruited a new figure, but the identity of the person hiding behind the mask is becoming increasingly enigmatic for Amazon’s superhero series.

According to a widely held belief, Sam Riordan from Gen V will replace Black Noir in The Boys season 4. Sam and Black Noir are nearly identical super heroes who mostly rely on their incredible strength and durability in hand-to-hand combat. Furthermore, Homelander included Sam and Cate in his inner circle of superpowers who harbor resentment toward non-powered persons as Gen V came to a close. Sam and Black Noir share comparable Compound V powers, which led to the speculation that Sam would take Black Noir’s place. Now that we’ve seen some trailer footage, that theory appears much more plausible.

Sam Being The Boys Season 4’s New Black Noir Is Supported By Trailer Footage

The Boys Season 4’s Trailer Reveals A Lot About The New Black Noir

Two key moments from The Boys season 4’s trailer support the theory that Sam is Black Noir II. First, a brief shot shows Gen V‘s Sam and Cate standing alongside A-Train and other members of the Seven at Vought HQ. Not only does this confirm Sam and Cate play key roles in the upcoming season, their presence in the main hub of Seven Tower is indicative of Homelander placing complete trust in them. Homelander is pursuing a violent supes-first agenda in The Boys season 4, and clearly believes Sam and Cate can help him achieve that. The supervillain teens are not peripheral figures in Vought’s hierarchy; they are major players in Homelander’s plot.

” The new Black Noir is a Compound V user with very similar powers to his predecessor. “

The second clue is Black Noir II’s fight against Billy Butcher inside the Boys’ Flatiron Building base. Noir takes a crowbar to the face like nothing, shrugs off a round of shotgun blasts, and knocks Butcher across several desks with minimal effort. When it became clear Black Noir would appear in The Boys season 4, one theory posited that Vought could take advantage of the supe’s obscured identity and hire an ordinary actor to be “Black Noir” in public. Noir’s death would go unnoticed, but the replacement would be a Seven member in name only – useless in an actual battle.

The Boys season 4’s trailer debunks that idea, conclusively proving the new Black Noir is a Compound V user with very similar powers to his predecessor. Taking into consideration Black Noir’s powers and Sam’s involvement with Homelander’s inner circle in The Boys season 4, it seems perfectly logical to conclude that Sam himself is replacing the deceased original Noir. Indeed, that explanation has now edged ahead as the most plausible solution to explain The Boys‘ Black Noir identity mystery.

Why Sam May NOT Be The Boys Season 4’s Black Noir Replacement

Two Counterpoints To The Boys Season 4’s Black Noir/Sam Theory

One detail of Sam Riordan’s crossover from Gen V to The Boys counters the theory that he’s replacing Black Noir in season 4. As highlighted by both Gen V and promo videos for The Boys season 4, Vought is marketing Cate and Sam as the “Guardians of Godolkin” following the big battle at Godolkin University from Gen V season 1’s ending. If the company plans to secretly zip Sam into Noir’s empty suit and pretend the original version never died, it makes no sense to begin promoting “Sam Riordan – Guardian of Godolkin” as a separate hero in his own right.

It should also be noted that Nathan Mitchell will continue playing the masked Black Noir in The Boys season 4. Primarily a stunt performer, Mitchell was the real-life figure behind Noir throughout The Boys‘ first three seasons, but the character was recast with Fritzy-Klevans Destine for unmasked flashbacks. When The Boys‘ showrunner, Eric Kripke, confirmed Mitchell’s return (via EW), he hinted the stunt performer would get a larger role, claiming, “We have Nathan playing a really interesting and hilarious character who wears the suit next season. We’ll explore it as the season goes on, but Nathan plays a whole new character.”

Kripke’s quote leans toward Nathan Mitchell becoming more than just Black Noir’s stunt performer and actually portraying the character unmasked in season 4. If so, Black Noir’s replacement would have to be an entirely new addition to The Boys‘ cast and certainly not Sam from Gen V.

Neither of these counterpoints, however, quash the theory that Sam is the new Black Noir in The Boys season 4. It’s possible that Ashley Barrett is behind Vought presenting Cate and Sam as the “Guardians of Godolkin,” but Homelander will take charge in season 4 and demand Sam replace Black Noir, explaining the abrupt change of marketing. Eric Kripke’s Black Noir comments, meanwhile, were made over a year prior to Gen V‘s premiere. Sam Riordan’s role in The Boys season 4 may not have been fully cemented at that point, and even if it was, the plan might have always been for Nathan Mitchell to stand in as Sam in the masked Black Noir suit.