‘The Boys’ Star Jack Quaid Embraces the “Nepo Baby” Label, Dismissing Its Impact on His Acting Skills

Jack Quaid is widely recognized for his portrayal of Hugh “Hughie” Campbell in The Boys, as well as for his notable voice roles such as Brad Boimler in Star Trek: Lower Decks and Star Trek: Strange New Worlds, Clark Kent / Superman in My Adventures with Superman, and Earth-65 Peter Parker / Lizard in Spider-Man: Across the Spider-Verse.

Despite his established career, Quaid is also the son of renowned actors Dennis Quaid and Meg Ryan. This familial connection has led some fans to label him a “nepo baby,” short for “nepotism baby,” which refers to individuals who achieve success in careers similar to those of their already prominent parents.

Recently, Maya Hawke, daughter of Ethan Hawke and Uma Thurman, acknowledged how her parents assisted her in securing her initial roles. Similarly, in a recent discussion, Jack Quaid expressed his acceptance of the “nepo baby” label but emphasized that he believes it has no bearing on his talent.

The interview in question took place on The Daily Beast’s “The Last Laugh” podcast, where Jack Quaid discussed various topics, including the notion of being labeled a “nepo baby.” Recently, his mother Meg Ryan defended him against this label, asserting, “Jack is really talented. He’s more of a natural than I’ll ever be. That nepo stuff is so dismissive of his work ethic, his gifts, and how sensitive he is to the idea of his privilege.”

During the podcast interview, the discussion began with a question about Quaid’s genre preferences and performances:

It’s interesting that you started in this genre space with a small role in The Hunger Games and that’s been a big part of what you’ve done. Is it the kind of thing where, because you start that way, you are thought of that way? Or is it really just what you gravitate towards?

I don’t know. Either way, I’m just very lucky because it’s exactly where I want to be. I love genre. I really do. I think you can tell such cool, amazing stories in the genre space. I’m very lucky to be where I am.

I will say, I thought you were also great in the movie Plus One, which is, I would say, a pretty underrated rom-com starring you and Maya Erskine.

Oh, thank you!

And that’s another path that you could have taken, doing more rom-coms. Was it a conscious decision not to do that, or was it just sort of what you got cast in?

It was a little bit of a conscious decision to not do it as much. It’s just got to be right, because, you know, my mom is the undisputed queen of rom-coms. So I can’t just get into that space, it’s got to be right. It’s got to be something that feels different enough from what she’s done. I’m not looking to take her place or anything.Source: The Daily Beast

The topic then shifted to the “nepo baby” label, as Quaid was asked to comment on the label that has been given to him:

Were you worried if you did lean into that sort of thing that people would call attention to that?

Yeah, I mean, no matter what I do, people are going to call attention to it. People have called me a “nepo baby.” I’m inclined to agree. I am an immensely privileged person, was able to get representation pretty early on, and that’s more than half the battle. I knew the door was open for me in a lot of ways that it’s just not for a lot of actors. And I’ve just tried to work as hard as I possibly can to prove that I deserve to walk through that door. So if that’s in the rom-com space, it’s got to be different enough, and I need to work my ass off.

Source: The Daily Beast

Finally, he was asked to comment on his mother’s words, as quoted above:

I did see an interview not too long ago where your mom defended you against that “nepo baby” label [“That nepo stuff is so dismissive of his work ethic, his gifts and how sensitive he is to the idea of his privilege,” Meg Ryan said last year]. And I was curious what you thought when you saw that.

Yeah, I saw that too. My first thought was like, she’s being a mom. She’s being a loving mom. But I don’t think she’s trying to say that I’m not a nepo baby. I think she’s just trying to say that, in her opinion, it undermines my talent. I don’t think it undermines my talent. I know that I work hard, and I know I’ve heard “no” way more than I’ve heard “yes.” But I also know that this industry is insanely hard to break into, and I had an easier time doing that than most. Both things can be true. So no, I don’t think she was trying to say that I’m not a privileged person. She knows. She must know. I think she was being a mom.

As of now, Quaid embraces the “nepo baby” label without believing it impacts his talent. While it aided his start, he attributes his current success solely to his abilities.

Do you share Quaid’s perspective, or do you have a different viewpoint? Share your thoughts in the comments below!

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