The Boys has returned for Season 3 and in the opening three episodes that debuted on Prime Video, The Deep was put in a tough spot. In order to get back in good with The Seven, The Deep would have to eat his best friend, an octopus named Timothy.
While the scene is tough to watch, don’t worry, actor Chace Crawford isn’t eating a real octopus–this isn’t Old Boy. However, the actual process to make this scene come to life–before the CG was added in–was still a tricky one.
Prior to digital effects being added in, Crawford still had to chow down on fake tentacles, to help make filming the scene as believable as possible. “Stephan (Fleet), our effects guy–Emmy nominated–is amazing,” Crawford told GameSpot. “There was actually a ton of tests before but they’re like, ‘So these tentacles are made out of mochi. Would you try these?'”
Crawford originally had to have some relatively stiff tentacles made of mochi; the real gross-out moment is when he bit down into the cephalopod and black ink came out. According to Crawford, it was maple syrup mixed with dye. And it apparently ruined maple syrup for him.
On top of having weird stuff in his mouth, Crawford also had a few facial accessories. “We just like strings and scotch tape.” The strings were attached to Crawford’s face and as he ate the faux octopus, the effects team would pull the strings, making it look like something was pulling at his face. In post-production, tentacles would be added in.
“We did have like a full rehearsal and they had real a real seafood tower, which is kind of disgusting after like, eight hours,” Crawford continued. “But the food we’re eating–like Colby (Minifie), she plays Ashley, she’s phenomenal–she’s vegan. So they made it all vegan. And the girls loved it. They’re like, ‘Oh, this is this is great,’ and then meanwhile, I was grossed out. So it was, it was a lot of fun.”
In GameSpot’s review of Season 3 of The Boys, Mat Elfring said, “t’s a series that knows its identity and leans in hard to it every single season. It continues to grow and evolve the world it lives in without losing that identity either. The cast is delivering some of the best performances of the series here as well. The Boys Season 3 is a must-watch for summer viewing.”
You can see this scene for yourself on The Boys Season 3 on Prime Video. Episodes 1-3 dropped on June 3, and the rest of the episodes will release once a week on Friday.
