Writing a solid television show is already quite tough, but it can be even more difficult when real-world tragedies strike, forcing the program to adjust and undergo a complete overhaul of the scripts. That’s what happened to Season 2 of Gen V, a spin-off of the popular Prime Video series, The Boys, as actor Chance Perdomo died tragically from a motorcycle accident at the age of 27 in 2024, just before they were preparing to shoot the new episodes. Untimely tales like this have happened before, of course, but there are several different ways to handle the loss of an actor. While most of them never feel satisfying, Gen V may have found a way to wear that loss on its sleeve, honor a friend, and keep his memory alive without sacrificing quality.
Paying respects the superhero way
Changes had to be made, not just to the majority of the season’s narrative, but creative plans in general, as Perdomo’s character of Andre Anderson already had a sizeable arc in the new story, and no one working on the show wanted to entertain the idea of recasting him. Not only would his absence need to be explained, but they didn’t want to simply write him off and hope that the fans would forget that they were down one incredible actor. The writers had to make sure his continued inclusion didn’t feel exploitive in any way.
The choice was made to kill the character off-screen, but to have him go out valiantly, attempting to help his friends escape a superhero prison, Elmira. Andre would fall as a hero, in the same light that much of the cast remembered their fellow actor. Many of them had scenes where they were allowed to talk about Andre, but let a little of that emotion for Chance slip in as well. One actor, Lizze Broadway, who plays Emma, even went a little further by wearing one of Andre’s sweaters in the final episode. Additionally, some of his story points seem to have been adapted for the character of his father, Polarity (Sean Patrick Thomas), who told The Hollywood Reporter, “The only thing I thought was, ‘I have to do everything I can to make sure we do justice to this young man and make sure he’s honored and respected and elevated in the way he should be.”
Moving on without forgetting
The cast was close. Perdomo’s sudden death made going on difficult, but at no point does it ever feel like their friend was forgotten. Andre’s final moments come up multiple times in the season, while other characters, especially his father, struggle with his passing. Made worse by knowing that he died in Vought’s custody. It became a cornerstone for the story, helping to motivate many of the others and increase our hatred for the excellent villain who saw Andre’s death as something of a failed ‘experiment.’ It kind of turns the last few episodes into a revenge story, one with a lot of weight and meaning. Andre’s death is a reason, a tool for exploring traumas, and helps push toward growth, not something that is simply used to move the plot along and forgotten. While those things are important, Polarity and Emma also discuss moving forward, because that’s what he would have wanted. The loss of those we love changes us, alters our lives, but we dishonor them if we give up on everything else.
The changes weren’t simply in the story. The writers and producers were real people affected by the passing of someone they knew personally, and as such, that changed the tone of the show when they sat down to re-craft the second season. The ending of the first set of episodes left our main heroes in a much tougher spot, and although some may prefer the bleaker outcomes, it seems like the more positive and hopeful conclusion to this season was well-received. One of the showrunners on Gen V, Michele Fazekas, said that Perdomo’s untimely death also made it so that she didn’t want to kill off any more of the main cast this season, out of respect for everyone involved, “because it seems so insignificant in light of what really happened.” Maybe that feeling of hope, the moment of everyone coming together, that’s more of what they needed to help work through their own grief.
It is tempting to speculate on which characters might not have made it out of that last battle had things not changed. It had to be Jordan, right? Am I alone in this?
Silver linings in improvements
Although tragic, the actor’s death may have given Gen V Season 2 a greater core to work from. The first season was fun, but this new adventure felt like it built more skillfully on that foundation and setting established in the earlier episodes, tweaking some of the things that hadn’t landed properly. The cameos and ties to the main show certainly come across more naturally, while the characters feel important and inspired this time around. It’s a solid lesson in how to treat spin-offs inside a massive shared universe so they don’t appear to be insignificant while we’re waiting for new episodes.
With the final season of The Boys approaching, we’re likely going to see a lot more death, so a third season for Gen V could be up in the air, or maybe it’s just a question of who will be alive and able to go back to class. For now, however, I appreciate what Season 2 did for Chance Perdomo’s legacy, how his character helped it, and even if Andre is barely mentioned again, it’s easy to feel the impression he left, and that the proper respect was paid.
