Hux was definitely not important in TFA, he did his speech showed up a couple times and was inessential the rest of the time.

I actually think the actor was miscast in the role, he's an adorable person and has been great in several other movies but there wasn't anything formidable about him as Hux. Granted, a lot of people read Hux as being less overtly threatening and more of an evil space bureaucrat but personally nothing about his performance really resonated with me which is a shame since I've liked him in absolutely everything else I've seen him in.

Sometimes I imagine someone else in the role entirely when I read fic, but that is just me.