‘The Boys’: Maitreyi Ramakrishnan Explains Countess Crow’s Bond With MM

The Boys‘ final stretch may be all about the final face-off between Homelander (Antony Starr) and Butcher (Karl Urban), but Season 5’s second installment, “Teenage Kix,” proved the show isn’t beyond introducing new players into the mix.

One of those players is Countess Crow, played by Never Have I Ever favorite Maitreyi Ramakrishnan, who serves up goth realness as one member of the titular teen supe group. But Countess Crow’s introduction isn’t the happiest as the Boys break in to test the supe-killing virus on her roommate, Rock Hard. Unaware that she’s in a room upstairs, MM (Laz Alonso) is the one to discover Countess Crow as she films a make-up tutorial for her followers, capturing the malaise of a young and overworked influencer.

Ultimately, she’s brought down into the basement with Rock Hard as the vigilantes plan to poison her too, for fear of being discovered, but MM can’t help but feel for the young girl who is taking anti-anxiety medications to cope with her Teenage Kix role alongside the less sympathetic Sheline (Emma Elle Paterson) and Jetstreak (Dylan Colton).

In the end, MM frees Countess Crow before Hughie (Jack Quaid) and Frenchie (Tomer Capone) release the virus in the sealed basement alongside Soldier Boy (Jensen Ackles), who appeared to fall victim alongside Jetstreak and Rock Hard, until the episode’s final moments saw him sit up in a body bag.

Below, Ramakrishnan opens up about her casting, working with Laz Alonso, embodying the influencer-era supe, and hopes for a Countess Crow return.

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Were you a fan of The Boys when you were cast as Countess Crow? How did your role come about?

Maitreyi Ramakrishnan: My like friends are obsessed with The Boys. So originally doing the audition was like, “OK, this would be a cool thing to do if I got the part and show my friends,” but then I got into The Boys after, of course, getting the part, so I can say I’m a fan now. But yeah, truly, this was a project that I wanted my friends to watch me die on screen in one of their favorite shows.

And then you didn’t die!

I know! I really was like, “Oh, I’m done for. I’m a young Brown woman. Homelander’s gonna kick my ass. It’s done.” Honestly, I was dying of laughter yesterday when the little tease came out because the amount of people that were like, “Yeah, they’re cooked, they’re done, it’s over,” and I was just kind of trolling some comments like, “I don’t think that’s this kind of show. I don’t think people die on this show.” I really wanted to die.

Since you did live, would you like to see Countess Crow return in other Boys universe projects? She seems like she’d fit in on Gen V.

I would love to, that would be awesome. I think Gen V is so sick, but also the talent on that show is like insanely god-tier, it’s kind of crazy. I think all of the young talent is just so good. As much as that would be awesome, I just don’t think Countess Crow is all that useful. I do know that crows do crazy things as animals. They remember faces, and they tell other crows… if you do a crow wrong, another crow will know that even though they’ve never met you. If they saw you on the street, you’re done for. So, maybe I’m underestimating my girl.

Maybe, but you do have to protect the flock of crows that remain.

There’s only two of them, but you know what? We need two to expand, so….

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What was it like working with your fellow Teenage Kix: Jetstreak and Sheline — whose power is fairly gross — and exploring the house? 

Absolutely gross. I think her eating the crows is probably the least disturbing thing [she’s done], unfortunately… but I mean, the Teenage Kix is so cool. It was really awesome to be able to see the Teenage Wall of Fame, getting to see A-Train, and there’s even a quick Popclaw picture up there, too. My costars there were so awesome because we were all just very excited. Dylan and Emma were very cool. I remember thinking, “Yikes, we all get to die.” I was kind of jealous. I really wanted to just experience some gruesome death.

You also get to cross paths with Rock Hard, who is stuck in the basement of the Teenage Kix house. What was it like seeing those practical effects up close? 

I have a BTS picture with that whole animatronic. It was huge, obviously, but it’s exactly the size that it is, and it was practical, but also, there’s a guy that goes inside. I wasn’t there when Rock Hard was actually moving, but I think there were other people that also helped move the body, so it’s like a multi-person operation. I just think the crew on this show is insane, the art department, the set dec, the attention to detail. I was so happy. In that gym scene, every single one of those dumbbells are branded with, “Vought Enterprise.” I think that’s a true testament to the skill level top to bottom on the show, the dedication that everyone has to the creative.

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Countess Crow’s story also showcases the dark side of influencer life as MM takes note of the different medications in her room. Does he see his teenage daughter in Countess Crow and that’s why he lets her go? 

One-hundred percent. First of all, Laz is an amazing actor and also human being, so kind, so friendly, and just made doing that scene so chill. When it came to my coverage for that, he was super supportive, gave me everything that I needed, but speaking to the character, I think he definitely sees his kid. When he’s having this moment of seeing Countess Crow, who is clearly putting up this front of this goth girl, like, “I don’t care about life,” and she doesn’t want to be there, she just really wants to be a normal teenager, and I think in that moment he see his daughter, and I love that little empathetic moment to also show, “Oh, MM’s got a soft spot, how is this gonna play out later? Someone’s getting a little softy.”

This version of Teenage Kix is definitely different from the one A-Train would have been in. How did you enjoy shining a light on the darker side of influencer life with this role? 

I think it was a smart move to show this kind of influencer take on these supes because what the show is doing is showing how corporations use and abuse, especially young influencers, for that free labor. I think that was a really good move because it is also just so prevalent in our world today, we are very far gone from the days of television network commercials, and even some film and TV aren’t being sold to you by showing you a trailer or even sometimes first look images, it’s because a fan made a TikTok edit that’s super amazing, and that made you go, “Wait, what movie is this?” I think it’s just a natural next step. It would make no sense if there wasn’t that element in this world of The Boys that always is tapping into what is going on right now.

The Boys, Season 5, Wednesdays, Prime Video