NEED TO KNOW
Won’t someone send help to Rachel McAdams and Dylan O’Brien?
In the Sam Raimi-directed Send Help, the costars play coworkers on the worst kind of business trip: stranded together on a deserted island with little chance of rescue. The “unsettling black comedy,” as Entertainment Weekly calls the film, sees “the colleagues descend into a battle of wills and wits. Who will make it out alive?”
A new trailer shows McAdams, 46, as Linda Liddle, under-appreciated on her consulting firm’s strategy and planning team — especially by boss Bradley Preston, played by O’Brien, 34.
Courtesy of 20th Century Studios
That dynamic changes upon being the sole survivors of an alarming plane crash. “Let’s not forget I’m your boss! You work for me,” shouts O’Brien, clearly wounded but still in bullying mode. “We’re not in the office anymore, Bradley,” responds McAdams.
After the trailer shows glimpses of escalating tension between the two, including a bloodied McAdams wielding a spear and a knife, she can be heard quipping, “I don’t think we should ever leave!”
“I found the two lead characters, Linda and Bradley, to be complex, human and constantly at odds with each other in often conflicting situations,” Raimi told Entertainment Weekly of Mark Swift and Damian Shannon’s script for Send Help. “The pitch was outrageous and original, all the while tracking these two in their conflict as their power dynamic changed dramatically. I knew right away that I wanted to direct this picture.”
Plus, there was the “story of female empowerment and transformation” for McAdams’ character. “What I really love about this story is that it’s an underdog tale at its core,” said the director. “Watching a once-powerful boss find himself dependent on someone he underestimated is satisfying.”
Courtesy of 20th Century Studios
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Raimi added that the story is “universal,” saying, “We need to encourage our society to treat people with respect and kindness, regardless of status. It’s especially rewarding to see our heroine Linda come into her own in such an unexpected environment.”
Send Help is in theaters Jan. 30.
