‘The Boys’ Season 2: Everything You Need To Know About New Superhero Aya Cash

Is it Christmas Day? I mean, the calendar doesn’t say December 25, yet we’ve been gifted with one of the most enjoyable new shows of 2019, Amazon’s The Boys, adding small-screen supernova Aya Cash to the cast for Season 2.

Hyperbole and seasonal tomfoolery aside, this is a match made in TV heaven. By any metric, The Boys is a hit for Prime Video, earning the vaunted “Certified Fresh” seal of approval from my old friends at Rotten Tomatoes and garnering praise from fans of the superhero genre. Season 1 was not only well-written and exceptionally acted but it told an organically compelling story filled with action, humor, and heart.

Viewers weren’t the only ones impressed with the subversive series as Amazon renewed the show for a second season a week before its premiere. Along with the Season 2 announcement, the streamer also revealed that Aya Cash would be joining the cast as the superhero Stormfront. If you’re unfamiliar with Cash’s work, you’re in for a treat. Here’s everything you need to know about The Boys‘ newest superhero!

WHO PLAYS STORMFRONT ON THE BOYS?

Aya Cash! You probably figured that out from the headline, though. Stormfront has electricity powers, can fly, is nearly invulnerable, and is even more dangerous than Homelander (Antony Starr). Aya Cash’s Stormfront also has a command of memes and social media, which makes her far more savvy than the old-media focused other members of super-team The Seven. But even though Aya Cash is the actress who plays Stormfront, Stormfront might be a better actress than Aya Cash: she’s holding on to a big, big secret.

WHERE HAVE I SEEN AYA CASH BEFORE?

Cash is best known for her critically-acclaimed performance as Gretchen Cutler on FXX’s trenchant anti rom-com You’re the Worst. I’m not exactly rational when it comes to this series because it’s one of my all-time favorite shows, but if you enjoy the whip-smart craftiness and unapologetically subversive tone of The Boys, you’ll love You’re the Worst.

As I wrote in an earlier article about the series, Cash’s excruciatingly realistic portrayal of Cutler, a character enduring the occasional highs and many lows of clinical depression, makes the subjectiveness of talent seem objective. There’s no denying that you’re watching a truly extraordinary performance. Cash’s ability to go from the veneer of happiness to the cracked-glass reality of abject melancholy is figuratively and sometimes literally staggering.

If you’ve never seen You’re the Worst, you might also recognize Cash as Joan Simon from FX’s Fosse/Verdon.

WHERE ELSE HAVE I SEEN AYA CASH?

After appearances on Law & Order and Law & Order SVU, Cash earned a starring role on the Fox sitcom Traffic Light. Also starring David Denman, Nelson Franklin, Liza Lapira, and Kris Marshall, the series was a fun hangout comedy that unfortunately only lasted one season.

Cash also appeared on Will & Grace and The Good Wife and secured a recurring role on both The Newsroom and Netflix’s Easy.

WHAT ABOUT THE BIG SCREEN?

Cash is no stranger to big screen success, appearing in Martin Scorsese’s The Wolf of Wall Street, Mike Birbiglia’s Sleepwalk With Me, and the Netflix movie Game Over, Man. One performance that has flown under the radar, however, is Cash’s portrayal of Mary in Molly McGlynn’s 2017 indie Mary Goes Round.

Now streaming on Prime Video, the movie follows Mary, a substance abuse counsellor with a drinking problem who returns home to tend to her dying father. A genuine film with sporadic moments of unexpected humor, the evocative picture is not only a perfect showcase for Cash, but a must-see movie for fans of independent cinema.

The second season of The Boys is expected to premiere on Prime Video in 2020.

This story has been updated to include additional info about Stormfront on The Boys.