When Reality TV Becomes Real Power: Raimi's Savage Class Warfare

A CEO and his employee crash on a deserted island. Guess who becomes the boss? Sam Raimi's latest film Send Help uses this simple premise to expose the hollow foundations of corporate power structures.

When Survivor Skills Actually Matter

Bradley Preston (Dylan O'Brien) embodies everything wrong with modern corporate leadership: nepotistic privilege, golf obsession, and zero practical skills. Meanwhile, Linda Liddle (Rachel McAdams) represents the overlooked workforce—passed over for promotion, relegated to planning meetings, finding solace in reality TV.

Their plane crash in the Gulf of Thailand becomes the ultimate performance review. Linda's "useless" knowledge of Survivor transforms into life-saving expertise: hunting wild boar, building shelter, actually leading. Bradley's executive authority crumbles when there's no boardroom to hide behind.

Raimi asks the uncomfortable question: What happens when real competence meets fake authority?

The Dark Side of 'Eating the Rich'

The film initially teases romantic comedy territory—two opposites finding common ground. Instead, Raimi delivers something more unsettling. As Linda gains power, she doesn't become a benevolent leader. She becomes domineering, calculating, ruthless.

This shift challenges our "eat the rich" fantasies. Yes, we want to see incompetent executives get their comeuppance. But what happens when the oppressed become oppressors? Linda's transformation from meek employee to island dictator forces viewers to confront an uncomfortable truth: power corrupts, regardless of who wields it.

The film's genius lies in making us simultaneously cheer for Linda's ascendance and question her methods. It's Lord of the Flies meets The Devil Wears Prada, with bamboo spears.

McAdams Masters the Metamorphosis

Rachel McAdams proves once again why she's perfect for Raimi's brand of controlled chaos. She can convincingly portray both the retiring office worker and the blood-splattered jungle alpha. Her Linda isn't just surviving—she's thriving in ways that would horrify her former self.

O'Brien, meanwhile, crafts Bradley as just unlikable enough that we don't mind watching him suffer, but human enough that his degradation feels genuinely uncomfortable. It's a delicate balance that keeps the film from becoming simple revenge porn.

Reality TV as Real Education

There's sharp cultural commentary in Linda's knowledge source: reality television. While executives dismiss such content as lowbrow entertainment, it provides more practical survival skills than any MBA program. Raimi subtly suggests that our cultural hierarchies—what we value versus what actually matters—might be completely backwards.

This resonates in an era where traditional credentials increasingly fail to predict real-world performance. How many CEOs could actually build a fire? How many middle managers could hunt their own dinner?

2026's Anti-Hero Moment

If 2025 cinema grappled with the limits of heroism and idealism, Send Help suggests 2026 might embrace pure nihilistic entertainment. There are no heroes here—just two flawed people revealing their true natures under extreme pressure.

Raimi's return to his horror-comedy roots feels perfectly timed. In an age of corporate scandals and workplace inequality, audiences might be ready for stories that abandon moral clarity in favor of savage honesty.

The island strips away everything except raw capability. In your own workplace, who would really survive if titles and hierarchies suddenly meant nothing?