JuicyTalk
Jack Quaid’s upcoming action movie Novocaine releases soon, and there are some clever fusions of action and comedy that are worth checking out for those who want a taste of what to expect. As seen in Novocaine’s official trailer, the movie follows Jack Quaid as a protagonist who uses his rare inability to experience physical pain as an advantage in hunting down the villains endangering his girlfriend.
Out of all the upcoming movies in 2025, Novocaine is hard to rank in terms of general anticipation. The movie should definitely appeal to action fans who enjoy more comedic outings such as Nobody and Love Hurts, but action comedy isn’t a genre that’s traditionally delivered quality on a very consistent basis. For those with high hopes for Novocaine, all it takes to get a taste of what to expect is a look at past works by the directors, cast, and production studios behind the movie.
5
Body (2015)
Directed By Dan Berk And Robert Olsen
The directorial debut by Novocaine filmmakers Dan Berk and Robert Olsen, Body lacks the comedic elements of Jack Quaid’s upcoming action movie but proves they can craft a compelling thriller. Body combines plot elements of Suicide Kings and I Know What You Did Last Summer. The film follows three girls who accidentally paralyze a man while partying at a house they aren’t supposed to be visiting and who must hide his presence while trying to keep their roles in his paralysis and ultimate death a secret from the police.
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Jack Quaid recently starred in the successful horror movie Companion, which only makes his upcoming action project even more exciting.
Body received slightly less than middling reviews from critics, but it still showcases a bit of what audiences might expect from Novocaine. The movie puts a strong emphasis on character development rather than twists and thrills alone. This is something the directors will hopefully continue doing if they wish for Jack Quaid’s character to stand out from other action heroes on the basis of more than just his superpower.
4
Lift (2024)
Directed By F. Gary Gray
A heist comedy by the same director as Friday, Straight Outta Compton, and The Fate of the Furious, Netflix movie Lift features Novocaine’s Jacob Batalon in an ensemble cast that also includes Kevin Hart, Vincent D’Onofrio, and Billy Magnussen. The movie’s critical reception suffered a bit from a middle act that feels more like an episode of Leverage than a $100 million movie, but Lift’s intriguing opening heists and closing action scenes deliver much the same quality of comedy and adrenaline-fueled excitement viewers might expect from Novocaine.
Jacob Batalon’s role in Lift is extremely front-loaded, so anyone watching the film specifically for his performance will want to pay the most attention to the movie’s initial heist scenes and the immediate aftermath thereof.
Batalon’s role in Lift is much smaller than the role he likely plays in Novocaine, but he nonetheless showcases the same comedic charm as seen in movies like Spider-Man: Homecoming. Although its critical reviews don’t suggest it becoming anyone’s personal favorite, Lift’s layering of multiple heists at once and its cast’s undeniable charm make it more than suitable for at least a one-time viewing on a rainy day. More importantly, Lift feels tonally very similar to what Novocaine is trying to accomplish.
3
American Ultra (2015)
Directed By Nima Nourizadeh
Before Novocaine production company Circle Management + Production rebranded, they worked on movies such as American Ultra under the studio name Circle of Confusion. American Ultra features Jesse Eisenberg and Kristen Stewart in what initially seems like a stoner comedy until Eisenberg’s Mike is revealed to be a sleeper secret agent. While the movie appears at first glance similar to Nobody or Love Hurts in its focus on a seemingly normal protagonist with a shocking past, American Ultra more closely resembles Novocaine in the sense of its hero feeling like a fish out of water thrown into a hyper-violent adventure.
Despite American Ultra’s commercial failure, the movie’s more positive reviews found its mashup of comedy and action effective. Some of those on the fence about the film might be particularly swayed upon learning that Stephen King, whose adaptation The Monkey received critical acclaim this year, is among the film’s more notable fans. It’s a solid premise for a movie, and reflects the action/comedy fusion that’s clearly at the heart of Novacaine.
2
Villains (2019)
Directed By Dan Berk And Robert Olsen
The most well-received film by Novocaine’s directors has been Villains, which largely received praise for its strong leading performances by Bill Skarsgård and Maika Monroe. Villains effectively blends comedy and suspense in an off-the-wall story of two criminals who find a kidnapped girl while on the lam. They pair risk an easy getaway to save her from her dangerous parents, a pair of antagonists played against type by TV stars Kyra Sedgwick and Jeffrey Donovan.
Films Directed By Dan Berk & Robert Olsen | Year Of Release |
Body | 2015 |
Stake Land II | 2016 |
Villains | 2019 |
Significant Other | 2022 |
Novacaine | 2025 |
Although Villains did receive a small handful of less positive reviews for occasional scenes in which its genres felt unbalanced, the movie demonstrates just how much Berk and Olsen have evolved as directors since the release of Body. There’s a clever sense of dark comedy throughout the film, highlighting a more successful genre blend. Assuming that evolution continues with Novocaine, a single viewing of Villains should offer a promising outlook for what the directors’ new action flick has in store for audiences.
1
Logan Lucky (2017)
Directed By Steven Soderbergh
Steven Soderbergh’s best heist film since Ocean’s Eleven is 2017’s Logan Lucky, which features Novocaine’s Jack Quaid as Daniel Craig’s brother in a star-studded cast including Channing Tatum, Adam Driver, Hilary Swank, and Sebastian Stan. Despite his relatively minor role in Logan Lucky’s cast, Jack Quaid more than proves his ability to play a comedic character in a film with high stakes, an ability he’s expected to more fully showcase in Novocaine. Quaid plays one of the conspirators in the heist, a doofus who provides solid comic support.
More than anything, Logan Lucky shines as a film that manages to prove highly enjoyable regardless of the viewer’s particular interest in crime comedies. The movie’s offbeat characters and uniquely crafted heist moments leading up to Logan Lucky’s ending all make for a thrilling and endlessly laugh-inducing ride. If Novocaine can achieve even half of Logan Lucky’s charm, it could easily rise to become one of the best action comedies of the year.
