By Kelly Kanayama
Geek culture favorite Simon Pegg has signed on for the Amazon TV show The Boys. As announced in a surprise appearance at the show’s official New York Comic Con panel, he’ll be playing the father of one of the titular Boys, namely Hughie (Jack Quaid).
Overseen by Supernatural showrunner Eric Kripke, The Boys centers on a special task force that takes down superheroes, who are far from the champions of good they pretend to be. It’s adapted from Garth Ennis and Darick Robertson’s ultra-violent satirical comic of the same name, so expect lots of blood, swears, maiming, and superhuman powers being used to do horrifically unethical things.
Pegg’s casting will hopefully put to rest fandom rumblings about his (previous) lack of involvement with the show. In the comic, Hughie was drawn to look like Pegg, to the point where some readers insisted that he was the only acceptable actor to portray Hughie on screen. With 12 years elapsing since The Boys first hit comics shop shelves, however, that was likely no longer feasible. Having Pegg play Hughie’s father is a major nod to the source material that acknowledges its importance for the show while still working within logistical constraints.
