'The Boys' season 5 breaks Prime Video ratings records despite online fan backlash

The Boys may be sparking heated debate online, but the numbers tell a very different story.

According to The Hollywood Reporter, the fifth and final season of the hit superhero satire has reached 57 million viewers per episode globally after just five weeks of data. Prime Video measures that figure based on viewers who watch at least a few minutes of each episode.

The performance marks the highest audience ever for the series and places Season 5 among the 10 most-watched seasons of any original show on Prime Video. The season also drove the streaming platform’s biggest three-week ratings surge for any television series or film.

The ratings milestone comes as some fans have criticised the season’s pacing and character-focused episodes, with a number of viewers comparing the final run to the divisive last season of Game of Thrones.

Showrunner Eric Kripke admitted that the online reaction initially caused concern.

“I’ve gone through a journey when I first started to read everything, like on social media or online, and it starts to feel like that’s the whole universe, and it feels scary, and you have a pit in your stomach,” Kripke told The Hollywood Reporter.

After seeing the ratings, however, he said his perspective changed.

“Obviously, how many times do I have to relearn the lesson that the online world is not the actual world?” Kripke said, adding that the criticism represented “a fraction of very loud, opinionated people.”

Kripke has defended the season’s slower pace, explaining that the writers wanted to give the show’s large ensemble cast meaningful and satisfying conclusions.

“None of the things that happen in the last few episodes will matter if you don’t flesh out the characters,” he recently told TV Guide.

With its series finale now approaching, The Boys is proving that while social media can amplify criticism, it does not always reflect the broader audience response.