For a while there, Jack Quaid was getting a lot of attention just for who he is: the son of Hollywood stars Dennis Quaid and Meg Ryan. Now he’s getting more plaudits for what he does, making a name for himself in his own right.
“Acting is something I love,” he tells WHO. “I’m not bothered about being a star, being famous or anything like that. I just love acting and I am very grateful for the opportunities that I have had. I’m excited to do more and to keep on testing myself.”
The latest test for the 32-year-old, whose first role was in The Hunger Games, sees him taking on the character of Nate Caine, a man who uses his inability to feel physical pain to his advantage when he must rescue his kidnapped girlfriend.
Here, Quaid talks to WHO about unlearning how to do fight scenes and creating chemistry.
How would you describe this movie?
Novocaine is a completely original, very cool, gory kind of horror action movie about a guy who cannot feel pain and who finds himself in a situation where his disability becomes his unique ability to save the girl he loves.
It’s the kind of movie that really harks back to the classic ’80s action movies that made you really root for the hero. It’s a movie with lots of action, lots of gore but also with a lot of heart and romance.
What drew you to playing a man who cannot feel pain?
I loved the script and I really loved the character of Nathan Caine, Nate. He is so sweet and sincere. I describe him as a cupcake of a human being with a disability that he uses to do something truly heroic to save Sherry, his girlfriend.
I found Nate as a character and the story really inspiring and very cool. I was excited to be involved.
How did you go about playing a character with such an unusual disability?
It was actually a really interesting process because usually in a fight scene, as an actor, you are taught to show the pain, react and kind of sell it that way.
With this, I had to learn how to not show any pain. I couldn’t groan or wince. I couldn’t show pain in any way in a fight scene.
It was a case of unlearning everything I had learned before and starting again. It was like nothing I had ever done before. But the stunt team were incredible on this. I learned so much. I had a blast.
Were there moments in those fight scenes where you were having to hold back pain or even injury?
You know what? This is easily the most physically demanding role I have ever done but I did not get hurt once. It’s the strangest thing.
I have had injuries before doing way less but somehow I didn’t get a bump on this. The stunt team were amazing in making sure every scene, every punch and kick were super-choreographed. So I have them to thank for making it out unscathed.
How important was it to find that chemistry with Amber Midthunder, who plays your girlfriend in the movie?
So important. The relationship between Nate and Sherry is absolutely the heart of the movie.
We knew we had to get an audience to care about these two people as a couple, as individuals. If you don’t have that, then you can’t have the action element of the story work.
How did you and Amber create that chemistry we see on screen?
We kind of approached it like a rom-com. The first part of the movie is all them as a couple, so we rehearsed those scenes over and over to make that aspect believable and for us to build that chemistry between the characters.
Nate doesn’t start out as some kind of tough guy. He’s a normal guy who just happens to have an unusual condition. He’s a sweet, smart guy.
He and Sherry are basically good people who have something really bad happen to them. The rest of the movie is how they go about dealing with that situation.
You also star in The Boys, which has been huge for you. What can you tease about the final season of the show?
We’re still shooting right now but I can tell you it’s going to be a great final season.
It’s emotional because the whole cast and crew have been together for so long. We’re like family. But I’m excited for the fans that we’re going out the way we are because you don’t always get the chance to end things properly.
Novocaine premieres in cinemas worldwide from April 3, 2025.
