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.”

Novocaine directors Dan Berk & Robert Olsen come from a horror background, and their latest movie proves how well those skills transfer to action.

Novocaine directors Dan Berk and Robert Olsen talk to CBR about the intense drama and emotional stakes in their unpredictable action-comedy movie.

Jack Quaid and Amber Midthunder are “dialed in,” making the romantic side of Novocaine work. As previously reported, the Paramount Pictures film Quaid stars as Nate, a regular guy — except for one thing: he can’t feel physical pain.

Jack Quaid and Amber Midthunder were among the actors who attended the Los Angeles premiere of "Novocaine" on Monday.

Quaid's leading role in Novocaine feels like a natural continuation of these genre-bent everymen. He plays Nathan Caine, a mild-mannered assistant bank manager who has congenital insensitivity to pain with anhidrosis (CIPA), a genetic disorder that impacts his nervous system to the point that he can't feel pain or temperature.