Robert J. Ulrich, Jackie Davies on ‘The Boys,’ Why Being Prepared is So Important

Three-time Artios nominee Robert J. Ulrich has been with The Boys streaming series since day one, working alongside his team at Ulrich/Dawson/Kritzer Casting and the show’s creator/showrunner Eric Kripke. Their partnership began on Supernatural and has continued through The Winchesters, The Boys and its spinoff Gen V.

Ulrich and fellow casting director Jackie Davies sat down with Casting Networks to discuss their work on season 4, introducing new characters, reconnecting with familiar faces and navigating everything from superhero suit deadlines to explicit content.

Insights: Lessons From Robert J. Ulrich and Jackie Davies

Always come to auditions fully prepared—this is the key factor that separates successful actors from the rest.

Comfort with self-taping and digital auditions is essential; use your familiarity with technology to focus on strong performances.

Read casting calls carefully, especially regarding explicit content, and don’t hesitate to decline roles that aren’t right for you—casting respects honesty and transparency.

You’ve been with The Boys from the beginning. How did that relationship start?

Ulrich: I’ve worked with Eric [Kripke] since Supernatural (2005-2020), so there’s a shorthand and a comfort level. We’ve developed a relationship and a friendship over 20 years now.

I know what Eric responds to, which is important as a casting director. Your job is to make everyone happy with the casting choices, but nobody more so than the showrunner and the creator. After all this time I know what he likes, and I feel very comfortable saying how I feel.

How is it decided whether a role gets cast locally or out of the U.S.?

Ulrich: It’s interesting, we’ve had actors that we’ve sent to Eric who have had just two lines. You never know the importance of the character to Eric, and whether he decides its cast in Canada or the US.

Photo courtesy of Prime, copyright © Amazon Content Services LLC.

Let’s talk season 4. Jeffrey Dean Morgan joins as Joe Kessler, a CIA agent connected to Butcher. What led to that casting?

Ulrich: Jeffrey Dean Morgan was a very major character on Supernatural, and Eric is extremely loyal to the people that he has worked with and likes.

What took Eric so long to bring him on then?

Ulrich: I’m assuming Eric probably always knew he wanted Jeffrey for that role, so I don’t think it was a case of taking long.

This show was designed to be five seasons to follow the comics. I’m sure that all along Jeffery was probably Eric’s number one for that role. We’ve lucked out on getting a lot of our number ones.

Davies: Also, Jeffrey was busy for a while because of his Walking Dead spinoff series, so even for this one, we were lucky we could find a block of time to sneak him in there.

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Rosemarie DeWitt joins season 4 as Hughie’s estranged mother. You’ve cast her before as well.

Ulrich: I’ve been a fan of Rosemary DeWitt since 2008’s Rachel Getting Married.

Years ago, I got a job on a show called Standoff (2006-2007). I think I replaced the casting director. There were 40 roles, about four or five were series regulars, and the only person cast at that point was Ron Livingston.

I got the job on a Thursday, started casting on Friday, and on Saturday and Sunday, the actors went to network. It started shooting on Monday.

Rosemary ended up as the lead. To have her be able to do The Boys was one of those moments of pride.

What made her the right fit for the role of Daphne Campbell?

Ulrich: She brought a quirkiness and a likeability to a character that could have easily not been likable, because of what she did by leaving her son (Hughie, played by Jack Quaid). I also thought she was a good physical match to Simon Pegg (Hughie Sr.) — [they] could have had someone who looked like Jack.

The show introduced several new Supes this season, including Sister Sage and Firecracker. What’s unique about casting superhero roles?

Ulrich: With superheroes in general, we are brought on much earlier in the casting process, because the supersuits take months to make. We always cast those characters long before we start shooting the show.

Davies: We cast Sage and Firecracker at the same time, because we knew they were both being introduced, and their costumes needed the same amount of time to create. For the audition, the actors had just the sides.

The writing on the show is so good, it makes casting fun. When the writing is good, the actors sound good, and they can take more risks. Eric and the writers created these two characters who were so clear on the page, that actors coming in to read could have fun and be free.

Ulrich: With Sister Sage (Susan Heyward) and Firecracker (Valorie Curry), the actors auditioned on tape, and Eric had a conversation and I believe that was it. There were no callbacks, no Zooms. It was just from the actors’ initial readings.

Davies: I had been a fan of Valerie since The Following, and I knew she was good and that she could be intense. She kind of surprised me by doing the accent, but there was some humor to the role. She popped!

Susan was newer to me, but I remember she was wearing these cool glasses in her audition, and she stood out as well.

Photo credit: Jasper Savage/Prime Video, © Amazon Content Services LLC.

There can be pressure to cast name actors on shows. Does that apply to The Boys?

Ulrich: That’s what I love about Eric. He is so open to not having the roles be names, so we’re able to get the best person. There isn’t the pressure of getting a name.

Splinter is a new Supe who appears in one wild episode. He’s played by Rob Benedict, another Supernatural alum. Given the explicit content of the show — especially that one scene with Splinter in the sauna — how do you handle those?

Ulrich: They’re pretty detailed. Besides a dialogue scene, the casting calls include an FYI of the character, like “Please do not do this for your audition. We do not need to see this, but you need to be aware that this is a scene that will be shot.” That way, if you’re not comfortable with it, you know it’s not going to be for you.

That’s remarkably transparent.

Ulrich: The casting calls are so explicit that sometimes I can’t believe that they’re allowed to be put out there! The good thing about that is that then there are no surprises. It’s all very honest and upfront.

Davies: We’re trying to be explicit about letting actors know we don’t need them to do this to land the job. We just want them to be comfortable on set with what will eventually be asked of them.

Have actors declined?

Ulrich: We had some who said they were big fans of the show, they would love to do it, but they’ve got kids. We understand completely. That’s happened multiple times, and we’ll try to get them in again on another opportunity.

Beyond the casting call, we’re also having conversations with the agents, so they’re very aware, too. I don’t think anybody ever goes in not knowing what they’re going to be expected to do.

This season featured some fun celebrity stunt casting. How did you get Will Ferrell to make a cameo appearance as himself this season?

Davies: The producers. They will make calls to their friends.

Ulrich: Tilda Swinton [voicing the octopus character Ambrosius], that was completely us. That was right before the strike. wWe reached out to the agent, and it worked! I was like, “I cannot believe this worked with no connections!”

It was incredible! A lot of casting is crossing your fingers and hoping that people are available and you can make it work. It really is. So much of casting is scheduling.

Davies: With this show in particular, and it being a hit, actors want to audition.

We usually have more talent than we need. We’ll send our choices to producers, and love each of those choices. So whoever they ultimately decide on, we’re happy with.

Photo courtesy of Prime, copyright © Amazon Content Services LLC.

Was there a favorite moment this year with casting?

Ulrich: I’m a huge fan of Elliott Knight, who played Colin, Frenchie’s love interest this season. I’ve followed him from 2012’s Sinbad and on.

I tested him for Brad for The Rocky Horror Picture Show: Let’s Do the Time Warp Again (2016). I think he’s very talented and very special. I see big things for him. I liked that particular casting a lot this season.

Davies: I love it when we can bring people back, like PJ Byrne, who’s only done four episodes of the show over the years. It feels like he’s been in so many more because he’s such a big presence.

I have a special place in my heart for all of our guest actors, because they’re all so good.

Let’s touch on the audition process. What’s the biggest thing actors should keep in mind?

Ulrich: Because I was an actor, I don’t have any pet peeves. For me, it’s all about making the actor feel comfortable.

I don’t have any major expectations other than I think they need to be prepared. I don’t have a lot of rules. Being prepared is the one thing that to me separates the people that usually rise to the top, and those that don’t.

What do you notice about the younger generation of performers coming up?

Ulrich: The majority are amazing. Ninety-nine percent of the tapes are good, and the actors present themselves very well.

Davies: I would agree. Even doing the Zoom auditions.

The younger generation is so used to technology that it’s second nature to them. It’s not something they’re worrying about so they can just focus on acting, which is nice.

They live in a social media world of selfies and filming themselves for their TikToks, so there is probably more of a comfort level doing self tapes that an older generation may not have.

Ulrich: Yes, they’re much more used to filming themselves than I was!