Summary
Jack Quaidis about to have a big year.
So, we’ll just say that there’s a demented sci-fi twist.
Think of it like a backward version ofSpike Jonze’sHer.
Image via Warner Bros.
COLLIDER: You’ve played such good or relatable characters on TV.
With Huey, with Superman, but in movies, you’ve played a lot of assholes.
JACK QUAID: I have, yes.
Image via Warner Bros.
QUAID: No, no, not intentional.
I think maybe it’s a bit of a coincidence that I tend to play assholes in movies.
I think that’s a really great and clever way of telling this story.
He’s not a good dude.
It’s funny because he feels like a real person.
I feel like I’ve encountered people like Josh.
Image via Warner Bros.
I think the scary thing about him is that he feels kind of real to our world.
I know in the past, you said withScream, you created a fake Reddit account.
QUAID: (laughs)Yeah, I did.
Image via Warner Bros.
Did you do anything similar with prepping to play Josh?
With Josh, you kind of more or less know he’s not the greatest guy the whole time.
I think really what I did is I work a lot with backstory.
Image via Paramount Pictures
I think that motivates him to do really despicable things.
Then I wasn’t commenting on him anymore.
I could just authentically play him as best I could.
You’re talking about backstory.
While watching the movie I kept wondering does he have a job?
He’s at a real low point in his life.
I think he’s a really lonely character.
That’s what it was in my head, at least.
I also work a lot with music.
I have a whole Josh playlist.I create a playlist for every character that I play.I would watch some movies.
It was a lot of delusion.
I watched a lot of those movies.
I watchedHer.I think Josh thinks he’s Joaquin Phoenix inHer.
I think he thinks of himself as a romantic.
He thinks of himself as a good guy, which is a red flag.
Yeah, all that kind of combined to make the character what he is.
I remember when you were announced to be in this, because this is from the same producers asBarbarian.
I was really excited, because I’m a huge fan of you onThe Boysand inScream.
QUAID: Oh, thank you.
Had you seenBarbarianprior to being cast?
QUAID: Yeah, and that was a big reason why I wanted to do it.
I remember getting an email.
The part was not mine yet.
I just got an email saying, hey, take a look at this script.
It’s from the same team that didBarbarian.
And I think I was just like, I don’t care what I have going on today.
I need to stop and read this, because that movie was so good.
And it just took me totally by surprise.
It was my favorite movie of, I believe, 2022, whenever it came out.
I absolutely loved that movie.
And I just think that this team is so incredible.
Boulderlight, they’re unbelievable.
Zach Cregger is a producer.
I’ve been a big fan of his ever sinceWhitest Kids U’Know, his sketch comedy group.
His Abe Lincoln sketch alone just changed my life.
So the fact that he made such a big splash in horror was so exciting.
And then to work with Drew Hancock, who created this amazing world.
And I just can’t wait to see what he does next.
It’s been such an honor.
QUAID: (Laughs)
How much experience did you have with her even before filming?
Like, how do you build that kind of odd?
It’s not sweet.
It’s not sinister.
You know, we didn’t know each other.
We had mutual friends.
Jasmin Savoy-Brown, who’s onYellowjacketsand was also inScreamwith me, was kind of our mutual.
But no, we kind of had to hit the ground running.
We chatted a lot.
And then there was some stuff that I think we didn’t chat about.
And then you start noticing, like, something’s a bit off about them.
And I can’t really put my finger on it.
I think that that was definitely intentional.
And we’re getting our first day jitters out.
So any kind of offness, I think, was very welcome.
It’s the first time where, oh, this doesn’t feel right, feels right.
It was a really interesting balance in that way.
This movie is being marketed as kind of almost a rom-com, but also horror.
Do you have a specific genre that you think this movie falls into?
Because it’s so different.
QUAID: No, I don’t.
(Laughs) Like, that’s what I love about it, though.
And I love that.
I love that Drew has created his own unique tone.
We shot the first half, and we’re shooting in sequence, more or less.
And we’re wearing t-shirts for all the summer-based scenes.
He was able to trim all the fat and then come back really lean and so specific and pointed.
So that second half, I loved shooting even more.
It was so great.
This is coming out a little bit around Valentine’s Day.
Would you consider this a date movie or not?
I hope you have a really great couples therapist.
I’ll say that.
I hope that you’ll work some stuff out afterwards.
It’s a good test I’ve heard.
A few of us have been talking about that on the press tour.
We’re like, it’s a good test.
And if they say Josh, run.
I feel like the first trailer for this movie, it completely just shows Josh as purely the villain.
Then they released a second trailer not so long ago that almost showed you as kind of the hero.
I think he thinks he’s the hero.
But yeah, it is.
God, I just don’t want to spoil anything.
I think that there are more twists in store.
I think it stands on its own.
Because that’s the way I read the script just being mulled over by everything that happened.
Because of my job, I’m supposed to like psychoanalyze the trailer.
But also just like,I kept waiting though for a specific dinosaur suit scene that I saw.
QUAID: Oh, thank you very much.
That was maybe the most fun I had.
Well, while shooting that movie, it was also one of the rare days we had like extras.
It was so weird.
Where we like weren’t shooting in that house.
But, but yeah, no, thank you.
I also had a genuinely good time with that scene.
This is your first of two big theatrical movies coming out this year that you are the lead in.
Which I’m excited because you’re playing a Nathan.
QUAID: Oh, there we go!
(Laughs) Nates are always cool.
I’ve known many Nates and many Nathans and Nates and they’re always cool.
I’m happy to hear that!
No pain, all gain.
Do you want to continue venturing into movies?
Or do you kind of want to do both movies and TV?
That’s to me the dream.
And I feel like I’ve achieved that.
I of course, we’ll take that on.
But I think movies are so I don’t know.
And I’m it’s an exciting thing to be a part of in some small way.
Companionarrives in theaters on January 31, 2025.
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