THE BOYS Casts Erin Moriarty as Starlight

The Seven just got their first member.

Deadline has revealed that the upcoming Amazon series The Boys, based on the Dynamite Entertainment comic series by Garth Ennis and Darick Robertson, has cast Erin Moriarty as Annie January, better known to fans of the comic as the superhero Starlight.

According to the article, Starlight is described as "a young woman with superhero powers who can make lightning bolts flash from her eyes. Her dream is to be a real superhero like the famous Seven."

In a world where superheroes embrace the darker side of their massive celebrity and fame, The Boys revolves around a group of vigilantes known informally as 'the boys,' who set out to take down corrupt superheroes with no more than blue-collar grit and a willingness to fight dirty.

Moriarty, 23, is probably best known as Hope Shlottman on the Netflix series Jessica Jones.  Her other television appearances include episodes of True Detective, Red Widow, Law & Order: Special Victims Unit, and One Life to Live.

Created in 2006 by Ennis and Robertson, Starlight first appeared in The Boys #3 as Annie January, an active superhero that possessed the ability to fly and emit a powerful blinding light.  Starlight served on the conservative teenage superhero team the Young Americans in her early years, where she also dated the leader of the team, Drummer Boy.  Anne was very religious and conservative, appealing to the good in people and with a sincere wish to do good.

After the death of the Seven member the Lamplighter, Starlight got her big opportunity, when she was called upon to serve in the world's premiere superhero team, the Seven.  Reality would shatter Starlight unfortunately as after a fairly routine tour, the Homelander presented a very different side to himself, demanding that Starlight engage in oral sex with him.  A shocked and horrified Starlight was in a state of disbelief, as more members of the Seven, A-Train and Black Noir, entered the room, removing their pants with sinister grins on their faces.  Homelander explained that no one was going to force themselves on her, but this was simply a matter of how much she wanted to be on the world's biggest superhero team.  After that horrible ordeal, Annie attempted to find solace in the women's bathroom, experiencing physical illness at the events that occurred prior.

A-Train mocked her constantly, making crude gestures at her, even in team meetings.  She quickly discovered that almost all the Seven were egomaniacal, greedy, insensitive jerks.  Team meetings seem designed around matters of finance and self promotion rather than any actual heroic work.  Initially accepting her teammates abuse, she began to defend herself against their actions, refusing changes that corporate sponsor Vought-American tried to force upon her, such as a smaller costume, a breast augmentation, and a back story involving rape to give her a greater "dark and more sexual" appeal.  However, standing up for herself came with the cost of changing her previously innocent character, making her prone to expletives, drinking, and violence like the other members of the Seven.  Some time later, A-Train attempted to rape Starlight and during the fight, she used her powers to blind one of his eyes.

Eventually, while out of costume, Starlight met the Boys member Wee Hughie.  The two happened to sit in the same park bench in Central Park, and Starlight was amused by Wee Hughie's thick Scottish accent.  The two strangers talked and they both experienced a positive lift in mood, although they chose not to tell the other about their real jobs.  The two soon began dating, with Annie believing her relationship with Hughie was "more precious than gold".  She intended to quit the Seven and move out, but was terrified Hughie would reject her if he found out what she did to get into the Seven.  This unfortunately proved to be true, with Hughie leaving their relationship after she revealed her true identity.  By the end of the series, Annie left New York and Hughie behind, due to the events following an attempted insurrection in Washington, as well as Hughie's continued discomfort around her.  She returned in the final issue, with the characters once again together, having decided to give their relationship another chance after both the Boys and the Seven were ended.

The Boys is expected to debut on Amazon sometime in 2019.