It seems like every franchise is hopping on the cinematic universe bandwagon (thanks Marvel), but I'm yet to see a production company do it better than Vought Studios. The fictional movie megacorp from the hit TV series The Boys has unveiled its extensive Vought Cinematic Universe (VCU), in a hilarious parody of Hollywood's favourite oversaturated film franchise trend.
The playful collection of fake films is surprisingly detailed, poking fun at some of the most renowned superhero movie logos from across the years. With blockbuster films featuring beloved Boys' characters like Homelander, Black Noir and Tek Knight, ironically it's one of the only cinematic universes I'd be invested in (if only out of curiosity for 'The Deep: Gods and Dolphins').
It all started when X account Discussing Film tweeted "Our live coverage of the #V52Expo is about to begin." announcing hilarious details about the spoof productions. Soon a VCU timeline, chronicling phases 7-10 of the movie corp's masterplan was released, revealing the extensive collection of ridiculous fake films.
Silliness aside, the designs each carry a sense of personality that expertly captures the essence of modern superhero movie logo design. This playful realism was integral to series showrunner Eric Kripke who worked closely on the project to develop a hilarious and detailed cinematic universe. "You can't imagine the effort we put into this one shot, I was obsessed. I wanted to be able the describe the plot of every one, with legit graphic design," he shared on X.
Fans soon realised that the influx of bizarre films was fake, with many playing into the ridiculousness. "Not enough phases revealed ?!? I don’t subscribe to Vought+ premium for nothing," one X user commented. "The MCU walked so the VCU could run," another tweeted while one fan commented "Wow, Vought's VCU is expanding faster than Homelander's ego! Can't wait to see what Phase 11 brings."
From the very beginning, the marketing for The Boys has been delightfully silly while feeling unique and fresh. It's great to see productions getting creative with their promo, engaging with fans and embracing a less generic approach to movie marketing.
This isn't the first example we've seen of an MCU parody, the infamous 'Poohniverse: monsters assemble' managed to traumatise me a few months ago with its extensive list of childhood-ruining productions. If you're looking for more logo design inspiration, check out our collection of the best fictional brands.
