‘Glad we have content that’s extremely relevant and topical’
The world is pretty messed up right now, so I’m glad we’re on a show where we can talk about it. JACK QUAID, Actor
I haven’t seen much content around Black Lives Matter movement and how it’s affecting people.
JESSIE T USHER, Actor
From being a genre that often gets shrugged off as mere comic book world material to having a superhero show that talks about issues that matter, things have changed quite a bit. And actors Jack Quaid and Jessie T Usher are glad they’re a part of the sci-fi superhero show, The Boys, which tackles realworld problems. Talking to us in Sydney, Australia, during a special screening of season 3 of the show, both the actors agreed that the project touches upon issues that people don’t see beyond a point.
Quaid aka Hughie Campbell, says, “When I read the script, I thought someone just took a look at America, made a script about the way the world is and inserted superheroes into it. I love how topical the show is and it’s so dense that it tackles a lot of different issues in an extremely tactful way.”
Usher aka A Train adds in agreement that when he read the script, “everything seemed reflective of what we’re seeing on a daily basis. It was refreshing to have material like this to work with”.
While the show is a social commentary on a lot of issues, it has a subplot around the Black Lives Matter (BLM) movement. Talking about that, Usher says it’s time we address important matters via films and shows. “It’s nice to have a different take on the social issues that we are seeing from a non-personal standpoint. I feel we are all seeing things only through our own eyes and can’t or aren’t able to see the big picture. I haven’t seen much content with regards to the BLM movement and how it’s affecting people’s personal lives versus being manipulated and used to push agendas. So, it’s good to see a project like The Boys, where they can blow those things up and we can exploit them in a creative way.”
Having said that, the actors admit that it does get mentally and physically challenging as artistes to be doing intense stuff on screen, episode after episode, for multiple seasons. “Yes, we do tackle very real world things, but also, there’s an episode where we drive a speedboat into a whale. So, there’s a nice balance,” says Quaid, 30, as Usher, 30, chimes in, “We’re having a lot of fun (laughs). Yes, we have really long days and the material can be extremely heavy and emotionally draining, but going to the set, being on this show, working with these people is like we are having a really good time.”