Jack Quaid: From The Boys to Companion, the Actor's Rise and Where to Watch His Work

Jack Quaid has spent the last few years quietly building one of the most interesting careers of any actor in his generation. From a recurring breakout role in The Boys to a voice acting fixture in Star Trek, to a steady run of theatrical leads, he has shown the kind of range that is rare for someone who could easily have coasted on a famous last name. With his name trending again, this is a guide to the work that matters.

Who Jack Quaid is

Jack Quaid is an American actor, born in 1992 in Los Angeles, and the son of actors Dennis Quaid and Meg Ryan. He has spoken openly about the choice to build his own career rather than lean on his parents' fame, and his early roles bore that out. Smaller parts in The Hunger Games, Vinyl, and Logan Lucky led to the breakthrough that changed everything.

What has defined his work since is consistency. He is reliably the most likeable person in every room he is in on screen, and that comic warmth has been the foundation of his career in both comedy and drama.

The Boys: Hughie Campbell, the role that broke him through

Quaid's defining role to date is Hughie Campbell in Amazon's The Boys, which ran from 2019 to 2026. He played the everyman at the centre of an increasingly insane satirical universe, an audience surrogate forced to figure out what kind of person he was going to become in a world where superheroes were monsters.

The role asked for almost everything. Comic timing, real emotional weight, action when the show needed it, and a willingness to let the rest of the cast do the louder work. Quaid was the show's quiet centre across five seasons, and the recently concluded finale was the payoff to a long character arc he had been building from the pilot. The Boys is on Prime Video in full, and you can read our guide to the series finale for more on how it all wrapped.

Star Trek: Lower Decks, the voice work

While The Boys was running, Quaid was also voicing Bradward "Brad" Boimler on Star Trek: Lower Decks, the animated comedy series that ran from 2020 to 2024. Boimler was a star eyed Starfleet ensign whose constant attempts to do everything by the book made him one of the most beloved Star Trek characters of his generation.

In 2023, Quaid even appeared in a live action version of Boimler in a crossover episode with Star Trek: Strange New Worlds called "Those Old Scientists." Voice work like this is often treated as supplemental for screen actors. For Quaid, it became one of his defining performances. Star Trek: Lower Decks streams on Paramount+.

Companion: the 2025 sci fi thriller

In early 2025, Quaid took the lead in Companion, a Warner Bros. produced sci fi thriller in which he plays Josh, the boyfriend of a robot companion named Iris. The film became one of the year's strongest original genre successes, praised for its sharp script and Quaid's ability to play a character whose easy charm masks something much darker. Companion was a major step up in profile for him outside television.

Novocaine: leading an action thriller

Released later in 2025, Novocaine cast Quaid as Nathan Caine, a man with a rare condition that prevents him from feeling pain, who is forced into a violent rescue mission when his girlfriend is kidnapped. The film leaned hard on the idea of an action hero who is uniquely unsuited to action heroism, and Quaid sold every wince and slow realisation.

Together, Companion and Novocaine in the same year confirmed that he could carry a film, not just elevate an ensemble.

Heads of State: the action comedy

One of Quaid's most visible recent roles is in Heads of State, the action comedy starring Idris Elba and John Cena. Quaid plays Marty Comer, a CIA station chief in charge of a safe house in Warsaw, Poland. In a film built around two enormous lead performances, he provides much of the comic relief, and the kind of supporting work that gets noticed because it is the moment the audience exhales.

Where to watch Jack Quaid's work

His major recent work is easy to find. The Boys, including the recent final season, lives on Prime Video. Star Trek: Lower Decks and the live action Boimler episode of Strange New Worlds are on Paramount+. Companion and Novocaine rotate across digital rental and subscription platforms by region. Heads of State availability depends on its current rights window.

For the simplest path to building a Jack Quaid watchlist, use Discover to see which of his films are currently on your subscriptions.

Why Jack Quaid is worth following

Plenty of actors break through with a single iconic role and then struggle to find a second gear. Quaid has done the opposite. The Boys made him known, but Star Trek, Companion, Novocaine, and Heads of State have all expanded what people think he can do. He is funny, he can carry a thriller, he reads as a leading man without performing one. Few actors his age have a slate that varied.

On building a career out from under his parents' shadow

The trickiest part of being the child of two of the most famous actors of the 1980s and 1990s is the assumption that your career is a continuation of theirs. Jack Quaid has spent the last decade quietly refusing that frame. In interviews he has consistently described the choice to build his career on small parts and his own auditions rather than the doors his name could have opened, and the choice has been visible in the work itself.

His first major screen role was in The Hunger Games, where he played Marvel, a peripheral antagonist. He spent the next several years taking supporting roles in films like Logan Lucky, Plus One, and Vinyl, all of which gave him reps as a working actor without leaning on his parents' famous names. By the time The Boys cast him as Hughie, he was a known supporting player rather than a famous son. That foundation is the reason the major roles since have landed without any of the noise that often accompanies the children of stars who break through.

The smaller roles worth noting

For viewers who want a fuller picture, a few of Quaid's smaller roles round out the portrait of an actor with more range than the headline parts suggest. Plus One in 2019 cast him in a tender romantic comedy opposite Maya Erskine, and it remains one of the most underseen performances of his career. His voice work outside Star Trek is also worth seeking out, including a recurring role in My Adventures with Superman as Clark Kent, a casting choice that is a study in instinct.

That last credit is interesting on its own terms. Voicing Superman, even in animation, is the kind of role that only goes to actors with a clear leading man quality. The fact that Quaid was the choice tells you what the industry has quietly known for a while. He is, in the older Hollywood sense of the word, a star.

Why his trajectory matters for younger actors

It is worth pausing on what Quaid's career represents for actors entering the industry now. He is one of the few public examples of a high profile family member who has built a career that does not depend on the family. The path he has taken, small parts, then supporting parts, then leads, has become rarer as streaming has eroded the middle of the industry, and his success is partly a vote of confidence that the slower route still works.

For younger actors deciding whether to chase visibility or build experience, his trajectory is one of the cleaner answers. The work compounds. The roles get bigger. The audience trusts him because they have watched him earn it, and that trust is now something he has that no famous last name can replicate.

Frequently asked questions about Jack Quaid

Is Jack Quaid related to Dennis Quaid?

Yes. Jack Quaid is the son of Dennis Quaid and Meg Ryan.

What is Jack Quaid best known for?

Playing Hughie Campbell in The Boys, voicing Boimler in Star Trek: Lower Decks, and recent film leads in Companion and Novocaine.

Is The Boys finished?

Yes. The Boys concluded its fifth and final season in 2026. Quaid's character arc reached its planned ending.

Where can I watch Companion and Novocaine?

Both films rotate across digital rental and subscription services by region. Check current availability on your own platforms before choosing one for tonight.

For more on the actors and films worth your time, browse our movie news and guides, or use The Movies Finder to find your next watch.