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Where was Queen Maeve in ‘The Boys’ Season 5 Finale? Showrunner finally explains her absence

Showrunner Eric Kripke details Dominique McElligott's absence in the season finale despite rumors of her return

One of the biggest rumors surrounding 'The Boys' Season 5 was the possible return of former Vought supe Queen Maeve, played by Dominique McElligott. After her last appearance in the third season, the supe was nowhere to be seen. Earlier, speculations were rife that Maeve would show up at some point in the final stretch as part of The Boys' plans to kill Homelander (Antony Starr). However, she was a no-show in the season finale as well, and showrunner Eric Kripke explained her absence.

Speaking to TVinsider, Kripke detailed the conversation he had with the actress leading up to the final season. "Dom and I email a couple of times every six to eight months or so, and she checked in on me after the Palisades fires," Kripke said. "We throw each other emails, and I said very early because I wanted to know whether we were building for it, 'Would you be open to coming back for a day, and here are the dates.' And it was very pleasant and respectful, she just said, 'I’ve kind of retired from acting. [I’m not] really acting anymore, and I’m busy those dates anyway,' So, that was honestly it. It was a very pleasant, non-controversial moment, you know? But we wanted to pay homage to her; she’s an important character, and so she shows up in the recap and in a way to show that Maeve passed the torch to Annie, and now Annie is passing the torch to Marie, and that there’s this lineage of strong women that started with Maeve."

Last seen, Maeve was one of those slipping out of Vought's control after she faked her own death in the finale of 'The Boys' Season 3. To quickly recap, Maeve lost her powers after taking the full brunt of Soldier Boy's (Jensen Ackles) explosion. Not to mention, she lost an eye in the process during her battle with Homelander. She was then seen retreating to a quiet life with her partner, Elena (Nicola Correia-Damude). The final episode sees a heartwarming conversation between Annie (Erin Moriarty) and Marie Moreau (Jaz Sinclair) about "never meeting their heroes", but Maeve's bond with Annie was deep and loyal, despite the two getting off to a rocky start. In a way, her absence in the finale also adds to how things ended for the Seven. Most met brutal ends, but fans will take solace in the fact that Maeve is alive and out there.