Exclusive: Helluva Boss Creators Finally Confirm the One Villain Who Can Never Be Redeemed

Prime Video’s hell-raising animated universe is no longer a cult secret: Helluva Boss and Hazbin Hotel lit up LVLUP Expo, packing out raucous panels and turning fan devotion into a full-on victory lap—with plenty of buzz about what’s next.

Helluva Boss and Hazbin Hotel aren’t just scrappy cult cartoons anymore. They’re full-on Prime Video hits with a diehard fanbase that will happily line up for hours to pack a convention hall. Case in point: LVLUP Expo, where I caught up with Brandon Rogers (Blitzo, and a co-writer on Helluva Boss) and Morgana Ignis (Sallie May), and came away with a very clear message — this creative team knows exactly where they’re going, how it ends, and they’re not shy about it.

The plan: both shows already have endgames locked

The big picture first. Helluva Boss is designed to wrap with season 4. Hazbin Hotel is set to finish after season 5. According to Rogers, they’ve known the final moves since day one — last season, last episode, character fates, the whole map. So if you’re one of those viewers who worries a show lost the thread on a character, this crew says it’s all intentional. Every choice is pointed at the finale.

As for tone, they’re not workshopping a mood chart. Rogers says the team just instinctively knows when to hang in a sad beat and when to break tension. The real writer’s-room time sink? The exact wording of lines, because they know fans are going to dissect every syllable and they don’t want one tossed-off phrase to scramble the canon.

Who’s truly irredeemable?

I asked about redemption arcs, and Rogers didn’t hesitate: Katie Killjoy. He ties her to something very real behind the scenes — he says the character was born from Vivienne Medrano’s experiences with people in the press twisting her words. For that reason alone, he doesn’t see Viv writing Katie into a redemption. He even joked she’s more likely to go out in a literal blaze. Fair warning to Killjoy stans.

Season 3 teases: Stolas hits bottom, Millie opens up

Expect Stolas at a low ebb this season — which, yes, is new territory for the proud owl prince. Rogers likes that it knocks him off the pedestal and puts him in the muck with the Imps. If you’ve seen the trailer, you’ve spotted the Millie–Stolas heart-to-heart; moments like that only happen because he’s out of his comfort zone. It also turns him into more of a full-fledged member of the crew, which they’re clearly having fun with.

On the Millie–Sallie May front, Ignis says their conversation from the end of season 2 isn’t done. It continues in season 3 — more talking, more unpacking.

Sallie May: hot, heartfelt, and not defined by labels

Ignis didn’t see Sallie May’s final design until episodes were finished — and then promptly watched the character blow up with fans. Part of it is the swagger; she’s hot as hell and she knows it. But what sticks is the confidence and the fact that Sallie’s an openly trans character played by an openly trans actress, without the show turning that into her only storyline. Ignis points out they’ve never even used the words ‘trans’ or ‘transgender’ on-screen because these characters are simply allowed to exist. The shows dig into social and political pecking orders — not transphobia or homophobia — and the audience has absolutely connected with that.

Ignis actually wrote their first short, ‘Hell’s Bells,’ which brings Sallie to Imp City for the first time and contrasts it with the rural Wraith Ring. Millie had been inviting her; Sallie kept putting it off; they finally have a blast together… until Sallie’s insecurities bubble up. She starts comparing herself to everything she thinks Millie left her for. No big blowup, just that very adult realization that new lives and responsibilities can quietly pull siblings apart. The episode ends with a pact to actually put effort into staying close. Fans have told Ignis it inspired them to call family they hadn’t spoken to in months — which is kind of the dream outcome for a character piece.

That groundwork pays off later too: at the end of season 2, Millie tests positive for pregnancy, and the first person she calls is Sallie. Post–‘Hell’s Bells,’ that choice makes perfect sense.

Blitzo, validation, and why the pilot got a do-over

Rogers didn’t expect a character so close to his own personality to be so beloved, and he admits it’s validating. He credits Medrano’s casting approach — she tends to pick actors who sit close to the characters — which makes the performances feel like tailored suits instead of contortions. That helps crush impostor syndrome fast.

Also: the animation glow-up is real. That’s why the team built a new pilot — they didn’t want fresh viewers’ first taste to be years-old production quality. And he’s vocal about what that says to the industry at large. Rogers lumps Helluva Boss in with other recent indie breakout projects like Iron Lung and Backrooms as proof you can make crowd-pleasing work outside the traditional system.

"Just give us your money and shut the fuck up. Just let us do it!"

To be clear, he also praises Prime Video for doing exactly that — basically telling them: you know your audience, just make your show. That trust seems to be paying off for everyone.

Crossovers: they’re happening, and not the way you think

Rogers wouldn’t spill the mechanics, but he did say it’s surreal opening a script and seeing Helluva Boss characters sharing scenes with Hazbin Hotel favorites. He insists nobody has guessed the method yet, and he’s high on how the worlds are colliding.

Dream team-up? Ignis picks Sallie May and Cherry Bomb tearing through a night on the town. Sounds chaotic in all the right ways.

LVLUP vibes and the global fan echo

This was the fourth straight LVLUP Expo for the crew, and the rooms keep getting bigger — think sardines-in-an-auditorium levels of packed. Ignis shared a wild moment from last October: she and her fiancée got engaged in Japan, she stepped off a train wearing a Helluva Boss backpack, and a fan not only clocked the show but recognized her voice. Different country, different language, same character connection. That’s the stuff performers dream about.

Rogers is riding that momentum too. He says it feels like they didn’t just hit their target, they obliterated it. And with Helluva Boss only halfway through its planned run when they said it — two more seasons to go — they’re not done swinging.

Quick recap

• Roadmap is set: Helluva Boss ends with season 4; Hazbin Hotel closes after season 5. The endgame has been locked since day one.
• Season 3: Stolas is at a low point and gets pulled into the Imp crew’s orbit; Millie and Sallie continue the conversation they started at the end of season 2.
• Sallie May’s impact: confident, funny, openly trans, and not reduced to a label. ‘Hell’s Bells’ deepened her bond with Millie, which pays off when Millie’s pregnancy test is positive and her first call is to Sallie.
• Blitzo and beyond: Medrano casts close to type; the animation has leveled up so much they built a new pilot to reflect current quality.
• Indie heat: Rogers cites Iron Lung and Backrooms as proof indies can shake the system — and says Prime Video has let them do their thing.
• Redemption watch: Rogers would be stunned if Katie Killjoy ever gets redeemed, given who inspired the character.
• Crossovers: Hazbin and Helluva characters are sharing scenes in ways fans haven’t predicted yet. Ignis wants Sallie May + Cherry Bomb on a chaos tour.
• Fan energy: year 4 at LVLUP drew huge crowds; Ignis even got recognized by voice on a train platform in Japan.