Arnold Schwarzenegger Didn’t Know His Son Was Starring In The Boys Franchise

Arnold Schwarzenegger does not try to keep up with pop culture apparently, even if his son is starring in it.

By Nathan Kamal | Updated

arnold schwarzenegger the running man

Arnold Schwarzenegger is many things, from action hero to electric care spokesman former executive in charge of the world’s fifth-largest economy to ice cream aficionado. But apparently, he is not one to keep up with pop culture, because it seems Arnold not only did not know his son Patrick Schwarzenegger is starring in the upcoming The Boys Presents: Varsity show, but he seems pretty unfamiliar with the massively popular show at all. In a recent interview with Variety, Patrick Schwarzenegger revealed that he had shown his father photos of the show in production, and Arnold Schwarzenegger had a pretty strong reaction. Here’s what the younger Schwarzenegger specifically said:

He looked at me and he was like, “What the f*ck are you filming?” I was like, “It’s this show called The Boys. You have to watch an episode to understand it, or else I can’t articulate what happens in it.

First off, we mentally picture that Arnold Schwarzenegger was smoking a large cigar when he saw the photos of his son, presumably in character as a Supe, and grimy said “What the f*ck are you filming?” without ever removing it from his mouth. Secondly, no offense to both of the Schwarzeneggers, but The Boys is not actually that hard of a show to explain: it’s pretty much just, what if superheroes were jerks? Not that hard, Patrick Schwarzenegger. Thirdly, this does raise the question of what kind of entertainment Arnold Schwarzenegger himself consumes on the regular, because it does not seem to be ultra-violent darkly comedic superhero shows. 

Patrick Schwarzenegger
Patrick Schwarzenegger

While Arnold Schwarzenegger is not officially retired, he has slowed down his rate of production in recent years. His last feature film was 2019’s Terminator: Dark Fate, which may have killed the iconic science-fiction franchise after losing over $122 million at the box office and becoming one of the biggest box office bombs in history. That is a far cry from Arnold Schwarzenegger’s 1990s heyday, when he regularly starred in some of the biggest films of all time. His only upcoming confirmed movie is Kung Fury 2, the sequel to the over-the-top, nearly parodic action 1980s homage film Kung Fury. As always, there are rumors of him returning to the role of Conan for one last go-around as the barbarian king, but we will believe that when we see it. 

This seems to indicate that whatever Arnold Schwarzenegger is doing with his free time these days, it is not watching The Boys. Regardless of his father’s attention, Patrick Schwarzenegger will be starring in one of the increasing numbers of Boys spin-offs, this one having to do with the most likely incredibly gory misadventures of a group of college-age Supes at Vought University. The series has already been renewed for another season and it seems the network is doing everything it can to turn it into a franchise. Along with The Boys Presents: Varsity, an animated spin-off titled The Boys Presents: Diabolical recently premiered on Amazon Prime Video to critical acclaim. And while it seems he can’t figure out a way to describe The Boys to Arnold Schwarzenegger (what if Superman was evil and had terrible self-esteem issues, see how easy that is?), hopefully, Patrick Schwarzenegger can get his father to watch an episode of it when Varsity comes out.