The Boys Season 5 Is A While Off, But Jack Quaid's Underrated Comedy Action Movie Will Help Make The Wait Easier
By Dan Bibby
September 13th, 2025
Like so many other people, I'm growing gloriously impatient waiting for The Boys season 5. In my search for something to make the wait a little easier, I came across a great Jack Quaid movie that scratches the same itch as Amazon's incredible comic book adaptation.
The Boys season 5 will be the show's final outing, although various other spinoff shows have already been confirmed to keep the franchise alive. Still, I worry that the satirical superhero saga won't be the same without its parent show. Season 5's release date has yet to be announced, but it's likely to land around Spring of 2026.
Quaid is best known for his role as Hughie Campbell in The Boys, but has appeared in some other great projects - such as Star Trek: Lower Decks, in which he voiced Brad Boimler in every season before it ended in 2024. Earlier in 2025, he starred in a great movie that went pretty under the radar, but fans of The Boys are sure to love it.
The Boys season 5 will be the show's final outing, although various other spinoff shows have already been confirmed to keep the franchise alive. Still, I worry that the satirical superhero saga won't be the same without its parent show. Season 5's release date has yet to be announced, but it's likely to land around Spring of 2026.
Quaid is best known for his role as Hughie Campbell in The Boys, but has appeared in some other great projects - such as Star Trek: Lower Decks, in which he voiced Brad Boimler in every season before it ended in 2024. Earlier in 2025, he starred in a great movie that went pretty under the radar, but fans of The Boys are sure to love it.
2025's Novocaine Feels Like Watching The Boys' Hughie Campbell Having An Especially Bad Day
Hughie's life is far from easy in The Boys. From the very first episode, he's constantly up against it in some pretty dire circumstances. Still, despite being incredibly vulnerable among the crowds he ends up moving in, he manages to pull off countless heroic moments. Pair this character design with the familiar way Quaid plays Novocaine's protagonist, and you'd be forgiven for thinking that Hughie Campbell and Nathan Caine were the same person.
Quaid's Novocaine character lives with Congenital Insensitivity to Pain with Anhidrosis (CIPA), which basically means he can't feel physical pain. It's a condition that does exist in reality, although the movie takes some creative liberties. While not a superhero movie, Novocaine shows Nathan taking an immense beating throughout that would make Wolverine proud.
The only downside for him is that he lacks any kind of comic book-esque accelerated healing factor. In this way, Nathan becomes even more like Hughie, although the latter does have spells of having powers in The Boys. Regardless, Novocaine is definitely worth a watch if you love The Boys. They both share a similar blend of violence, comedy, and drama. They both also star Jack Quaid in the role of the unlikely hero.
The only downside for him is that he lacks any kind of comic book-esque accelerated healing factor. In this way, Nathan becomes even more like Hughie, although the latter does have spells of having powers in The Boys. Regardless, Novocaine is definitely worth a watch if you love The Boys. They both share a similar blend of violence, comedy, and drama. They both also star Jack Quaid in the role of the unlikely hero.
Novocaine Deserved To Do Far Better At The Box Office Than It Did
Released in March 2025, Novocaine wasn't the financial success that the studio wanted it to be. The movie fell just short of doubling its reported $18 million budget, which tends to be what's necessary for a feature film to start turning a profit after marketing costs are accounted for. Sadly, this isn't really a surprise, as only huge movies that belong to established franchises are pretty much the only real successes at the box office these days.
But don't let Novocaine's commercial figures dissuade you from watching it. It currently has an impressive score of 80% on Rotten Tomatoes, and fans have rated it even higher with a score of 84%. It's definitely worth your time. It's not a masterpiece by any stretch of the imagination. That doesn't mean it's not a fun ride, and clocking in at just under two hours means there's little time wasted if it turns out not to be your kind of thing.
Although a sequel hasn't been greenlit, Quaid and members of the movie's production team have commented on the possibility and seem into the idea of making Novocaine 2. I'm not sure how necessary such an endeavor would be, but the movie's ending certainly leaves the door open for a follow-up. Then again, if this is the last time we've seen Nathan Caine, that works too.
But don't let Novocaine's commercial figures dissuade you from watching it. It currently has an impressive score of 80% on Rotten Tomatoes, and fans have rated it even higher with a score of 84%. It's definitely worth your time. It's not a masterpiece by any stretch of the imagination. That doesn't mean it's not a fun ride, and clocking in at just under two hours means there's little time wasted if it turns out not to be your kind of thing.
Although a sequel hasn't been greenlit, Quaid and members of the movie's production team have commented on the possibility and seem into the idea of making Novocaine 2. I'm not sure how necessary such an endeavor would be, but the movie's ending certainly leaves the door open for a follow-up. Then again, if this is the last time we've seen Nathan Caine, that works too.
There's Another Upcoming Project That Will Make The Wait For The Boys Season 5 Even Easier Than Novocaine
Gen V season 2 is set to land on Prime with a triple-episode premiere on September 17th, 2025. The show is softly billed as a spinoff of The Boys, but it would be disingenuous to describe it as optional viewing. Gen V season 1 took place between The Boys seasons 3 and 4, and the events bled into its parent show in a way that made it difficult to ignore.
So, although Novocaine kills a couple of hours of your miserable The Boys-less existence, it's not a true replacement for Quaid's superhero show. Gen V is a far better way to get your fix, with season 2 not set to end until October 22nd. While it's not confirmed whether Quaid will appear in Gen V season 2, the franchise's established willingness for its characters to jump between shows means the possibility can't be ruled out.
Just as watching The Boys season 4 would have felt incomplete without seeing Gen V's inaugural run, I expect the imminent batch of episodes to be equally important to The Boys season 5. Therefore, Gen V is far more than just a way of passing the time ahead of The Boys' return - it's a vital part of the larger story, whereas Novocaine is a self-contained and canonically unrelated project.
So, although Novocaine kills a couple of hours of your miserable The Boys-less existence, it's not a true replacement for Quaid's superhero show. Gen V is a far better way to get your fix, with season 2 not set to end until October 22nd. While it's not confirmed whether Quaid will appear in Gen V season 2, the franchise's established willingness for its characters to jump between shows means the possibility can't be ruled out.
Just as watching The Boys season 4 would have felt incomplete without seeing Gen V's inaugural run, I expect the imminent batch of episodes to be equally important to The Boys season 5. Therefore, Gen V is far more than just a way of passing the time ahead of The Boys' return - it's a vital part of the larger story, whereas Novocaine is a self-contained and canonically unrelated project.
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