‘Mission Impossible’ Star Simon Pegg Reveals Why He’s Not in ‘The Boys’

Fans of the AMC series Preacher should be excited to know that the same team behind the series based on the Vertigo comic are bringing yet another popular comic to life, but don’t expect Simon Pegg to be involved.

When the superhero-slapping series The Boys premieres on Amazon later this year, it will have a different actor playing Wee Hughie. But the original comic from artist Darick Robertson depicted the character to look like Pegg.

And yet, the Mission: Impossible and Star Trek actor is not regretting missing the opportunity to bring the comic to life.

“No, because I was never up for it,” said Pegg. “I mean, I played Hughie in the comics [as] Darick Robinson drew me as Hughie but [he’s] in his early twenties so I was never going to play Hughie [Laughs]. I was never eligible to play Hughie. I’m really happy that Jack Quaid got the role because I think Jack’s a brilliant actor and I can’t wait to see what they do with the adaptation of it.”

Hughie is a younger character in the comics, which might have played a part in why Evan Goldberg and Seth Rogen decided to go with Jack Quaid, but it’s not the sole reason why Pegg is missing out.

As he noted, it’s just not a project that he is suited for.

“I never expected to get the call to play Hughie just because I’m not right for the part,” Pegg said. “It’s a fantastic book and Karl Urban is going to be great as Butcher so it’s exciting to get to sit back and watch it. I’m very honoured I was immortalised as a comic book character as well. I never asked to be but Darick just did it for shits and giggles and I was kind of super chuffed!”

Pegg is appearing in Mission: Impossible – Fallout, and is likely to reprise his Star Trek role in the upcoming fourth film in the franchise. So don’t lose sleep over any lost opportunity, the actor is a busy man.

There’s no word yet on when The Boys is going to premiere, but it will be released on Amazon soon.

[h/t ComicBookMovie]