For Dan Berk and Robert Olsen, the opening love story between Jack Quaid and Amber Midthunder was non-negotiable: “you’ve got to trust the audience here. This isn't a streaming movie.”

The hero at the heart of “Novocaine” can't feel pain. The new film in theaters Friday stars Jack Quaid as Nate, an ordinary guy whose disability becomes his saving grace when attempting to save a hostage from violent criminals.

Novocaine star Jack Quaid has carved himself a niche by playing the everyman archetype with a genre twist. In The Boys, he's a nobody thrust into a world of superheroes. In Star Trek: Lower Decks, he's an ambitious worker bee on a starship.