It isn't a coincidence that Hughie from The Boys looks like Simon Pegg. The character Hughie or Hugh Campbell from The Boys was created by Garth Ennis and is based on a mix of Simon Pegg and a personal friend. Back when the comics were first created in the early 2000s, Simon Pegg wasn't such a successful star and widely known.
Thereafter, Simon's rise to stardom coincided with the rise of The Boys, so much so that he was eventually cast as Hugh Campbell Sr. in the eventual adaptation.
Despite being appropriated by The Boys, Simon Pegg has maintained that he has always been a huge fan of the comic literature created by Darick Robertson and Garth Ennis. Although neither Ennis nor Robertson had consulted Pegg before creating Hughie in his likeness, Pegg has had no malice towards the graphic artists whatsoever.
Initially, neither Ennis-Robertson nor Pegg himself thought the likeness between the actor and the character would attract much attention. However, following the breakthrough success of Edgar Wright's Shaun of the Dead, Simon Pegg became a household name and a shining star. On the other hand, The Boys was able to cement its position as one of the most important graphic novels in recent times. Here's everything we know.
Simon Pegg's connection to Hugie from The Boys explained
Back in the early 2000s, Simon Pegg was relatively unknown to the world at large. He had just appeared on the UK sitcom Spaced, and this was when he attracted the attention of Darick Robertson and Garth Ennis.
Pegg portrayed the role of struggling artist and comic-store employee Tim Bisley alongside Daisy Steiner, played by Jessica Hynes. Interestingly, Jessica would later go on to appear alongside Simon in Shaun of the Dead.
As the story goes, Simon had not even the remotest idea that his likeness was about to be used in The Boys to create the character of Hughie. He was given a heads-up by one of his friends who had access to Robertson's work, and it is fair to say that Simon was astounded. To him, it was like a reverse audition, in which he was selected to be part of a franchise without his involvement.
The genesis of the character of Hughie itself came from Robertson, who directed Ennis to draw him as someone who embodies both tough determination and innocence. Ennis, on his part, came up with the solution of merging the likeness of Simon Pegg and a friend from the past. The name of the character itself is a reference to the poem "Wee Hughie" written by Elizabeth Shane.
Simon Pegg opens up about looking like Hughie from The Boys
Simon Pegg wrote the introduction to the collected edition of The Boys Volume 1 in which he mentioned that:
"Had I not been a comic fan, or indeed an admirer of Garth's previous works, I might have been a little p****d off."
He further speculated that perhaps Darick Robertson never expected him to become such a global star. He remarked:
"I guess Darick assumed I would forever be consigned to culty British television and would never emerge into the mainstream enough for me or anyone else to make the connection. I don't hold that against him, I thought much the same at the time. As it turned out, a cricket bat and a zombie outbreak in Crouch End, North London put paid to that speculation."
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Robertson himself attested to this when he commented,
"I never thought the reference would get so much attention."
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