Deep into the shoot on the hot, humid beaches of Thailand for Send Help, Dylan OBrien was having the time of his life. Hed connected and bonded with his costar, Rachel McAdams, and felt more creatively aligned with his director, Sam Raimi, than hed expect for a studio production. Then Raimi told him that, for this gory survival thriller, hed need to eat a beetle in a visceral single-take sequence on camera.

He was like, Theres however many species that you can actually ingest, and its totally fine, theyve been tested and proven, OBrien recalls through chuckles. Im kind of like, Oh, whoa. I wasnt spoken to about thatBut Im game. I trust it. Yeah, that makes sense. Then Raimi broke the act: He was kidding. The bug would be fake. But this much is clear: OBrien would have eaten the beetle. Watching the nasty Send Help oner in question, you can feel the actors insides already twisting themselves out, gearing up for the crunch of raw insect.

Were sitting on a poolside patio in Hollywood, almost exactly a year since I first met OBrien in advance of the Sundance premiere of Twinless, the dark indie comedy for which hes nominated for best lead performance at next months Spirit Awards (the film, directed by James Sweeney, is also up for best feature). In the time since, he admits, hes experienced a kind of industry whiplash great reviews followed by promotional indifference for Twinless, and an exciting return to the world of studio movies with 20th Centurys Send Help, having consciously avoided blockbusters after his breakout in the Maze Runner films.

Dylan OBrien and Rachel McAdams in Send Help Brook Rushton/20th Century Studios Raimi came knocking with his own return to the space, as Send Help is his first original film in 17 years, coming off of the most recent Doctor Strange entrant. OBrien grew up a massive Raimi fan. I was so much the kid who really loved Spider-Man. Im pretty sure I went for my 10th birthday party, and I still think those far and away the best Spider-Man [movies], he says of Raimis original 2002-2007 trilogy. Most of the population of the world would fight you on that at this point. I dont know. I feel kind of fearful of saying it because its such a crazy thing now when you exert opinions.

He throws his hands up, in endearing exasperation at the disastrous state of online discourse, before forging ahead: He also loved Raimis last original, Drag Me to Hell, as well as his horror classics Darkman and The Evil Dead.

Send Help had already attached its female lead in Rachel McAdams, whom OBrien has long admired, and the script by Freddy vs. Jason alums Mark Swift and Damian Shannon felt bold. Its certainly not lost on me that it was definitely the best job thats come my way in a really long time, the 34-year-old says. His first meeting with Raimi only solidified that feeling. He had a paper bag on his head he welcomed me into his office with this paper bag on his head and he was like, Hey, pal. How are you? Im Sam, OBrien says. That was such a warming way to greet me. And it was so disarming and it was so welcoming.

This thing had the whole package, in other words. And yet OBrien felt nervous specifically, about his character. He wanted to make him meaner. I was very concerned about: Are we going to be in a space now all of a sudden where were making the safest version of this? he says. Especially from a studio space when theyre doing something original, which is rarer and rarer nowadays, theres this fear and calculating of the numbers and wanting the most bankable down the middle thing and thats what it breeds creatively.

The likability quotient was the one turn that we initially conflicted on, Raimi tells me. But by that point he had earned my trust and we ended up going with his direction he was so right! In retrospect, I couldnt imagine the character being played any other way. McAdams adds of OBrien, He said to me, It seems like people are so worried about looking good or coming off as likable nowadays. I think thats so limiting. There was certainly a nervousness in the room some days where it was like, How much will the audience take?

Send Help Brook Rushton/20th Century Studios **

In Send Help, OBrien plays Bradley Preston, whos just inherited his late dads company as CEO. Hes immediately irritated by one of his employees, Planning Strategy Department veteran Linda Liddle (McAdams), who says she was promised a promotion before the change in leadership. Bradley hears none of it: Hes repulsed by her and plans on firing her, but only after he gets some use out of her genius for numbers on a business trip to Thailand. In a violent storm, however, their plane goes down and Linda and Bradley are the only survivors on the beach. It just so happens that Linda is a Survivor fanatic whod been training for this day for years without realizing it. Bradley, both injured and clueless, has no choice but to let her lead the way. Wish him luck.

Raimi was unfamiliar with OBriens work on film until casting director Nancy Nayor introduced him to his work. Though he broke out leading YA hits like Teen Wolf and Maze Runner films, OBrien has more recently proven himself as a versatile character actor, whether as an intersex sex workers pimp and lover in Ponyboi or as a boisterous Dan Ackroyd in Jason Reitmans Saturday Night. I fell in love with him, Raimi says. Hes brilliant in [Send Help] and he truly made it his own. He has a funny look to him, but hes talented.

The project arrived at the right time for OBrien, who was just launching Twinless at Sundance when production began. Like many actors of his generation, hed fallen out of love with the big movies that had enticed him to the industry in the first place. I come from that window of time when I was a kid, where Im weirdly jaded about the advancements of CGI and how theyve produced a negative effect, he says. Im one of those guys who looks back at movies from the 90s and Im just like, we had it better then.

Fortunately, Send Help gloriously showcases Raimis love for twisted comedy, unhinged action and copious amounts of blood. It also presents two fiercely flawed protagonists.

Thats going further and further away, and yet every year, what are the movies that were still loving? Look at Leo in One Battle [After Another], OBrien says. Its proven that this is a dynamic leading character. Why are we so afraid to just lean into that? He continues, You dont see original swings like this in a studio space. Ive got to be honest, I dont think that it wouldve even been greenlit if it wasnt Sam and it wasnt Rachel. I was just really grateful to be a part of something that I guess I personally miss.

McAdams tells me that Send Help is one of the most experimental films Ive ever done. OBrien was a big reason why: In rehearsals and on set, the two actors and Raimi would have long talks about the story, the characters, their descent into sun-kissed madness. Dylan had such a vision for the arc of his character and he was so brave, she says. He said, I really believe in this. I really believe that the stronger the choices, the better the payoff. And he was absolutely right. These choices are certainly strong at the outset: He plays Bradley as the most arrogant guy in the room, blinkered by privilege and baffled by the notion of giving Linda the time of day. Hes fun to hate but hes familiar. You know this kind of guy.

I could be hateable, I still could be wrong. I could be totally hateable in this, OBrien says. But I hope that it was grounded enough in a way that we really tried to make it make sense from his point of view.

He felt as though McAdams and Raimi had his back the whole time necessary, since by the time they entered their second month shooting long days on that hot Thailand beach, things started getting a little delirious, McAdams admits. She and OBrien had long talks about the industry and navigating careers in todays topsy-turvy Hollywood. It was really beautiful to see someone that I looked up to so much from a creative standpoint, and then got to meet and work with on a personal level and looked up to even more as a human, OBrien says.

And when it came to their physical fighting scenes, of which there are many? The trust remained. I had to roll on her at one point, and shes like, I think youre denser than you realize, OBrien recalls. Im like, What do you mean? Look at these tiny knees!

OBrien and James Sweeney in Twinless Courtesy of Roadside Attractions **

OBrien is winding down one of the most intensive press tours of his life for Twinless, and he describes it as a rollercoaster. At a few points, he brings up Instagram. I cant tell you how many times Ive been complained to about not having an Instagram and thats coming from people who truly have the power to build awareness. Its like its a slap in the face. Its literally telling me that theyre not going to spend the money, he says. But its hard to not have your moments of feeling responsible, even ridiculous moments where youre like, Should I have gotten an Instagram? Its unfair to yourself. There are, Im sure, casting conversations Im left out of because of that. Its not like thats actually explicitly said to me during these conversations, but I imagine so just because it seems to be very much a main topic.

Twinless was made for next-to-nothing and features OBriens richest screen performance to date as twins one grieving the death of the other. It premiered at last years Sundance to some of its best reviews. It was available on the festivals online platform, which led to explicit scenes featuring OBrien being leaked on social media; it was then taken down. The movie struggled to find distribution, despite the great reviews and the marquee role for OBrien, whos got a following Instagram handle or not.

My glass half-full take would be, This is horrible, but any awareness is awareness, OBrien says of whether the leaks were a factor. But I do think that there is a bit of that that may have diminished our film.

In any case, Twinless was eventually acquired by Roadside Attractions, an experience OBrien seems to have found frustrating. Its hard to not look back and be like, Wow, what would it have been like if it was really put out there? he says. Such a massive piece of it is on the studios and distributors of really backing the films that they acquire, especially when theyre smaller films and not something that someones going to know outright. He looks at me, assessing whether I can read between the lines. You know what Im saying? I nod: from the great reviews a year ago to the Spirit noms of today, Twinless had the goods.

Theres many moments where it certainly, yeah, was super disappointing, he says. It was all there. Thats the piece where its the disappointment.

Twinless is up for the top Spirit Award opposite the Oscar nominee Train Dreams, and then movies that fell largely outside any kind of awards conversation: Peter Hujars Day, The Plague and Sorry Baby. At the time that the nominations came out, half of these, I was like, I have to look it up and theyre fantastic, OBrien says. You look at this year: I dont know if I could name a single independent film that was really marketed, and thats scary.

Which brings us back to Send Help: the kind of filmmaker-driven, midbudget studio movie that Hollywood seems to have largely cast aside. Its not necessarily on a blood-soaked survival thriller being released at the end of January to single-handedly resurrect the category, but OBrien has noticed the power of its marketing. I cant watch a single playoff game without seeing the damn trailer 19 times, he says, smiling. Im so psyched to see how much theyre getting behind it.

Yet OBrien also speaks with enough wisdom to know things, on a macro level, may keep going in the opposite direction. As he continues to map out his career, hes clearly got that vision McAdams was talking about multifaceted, thoughtful, eager for risk. This was a unicorn of a job, he says. I certainly dont think Send Help means that Im going back toward the studio space. I nod along, and he continues: Listen, I would if they were all Send Helps, right? But it just feels like its, again, a novel he struggles to find the right words. Hes led us to this point expertly, however, so its not too hard to send a little help to land this plane.

Exception that proves the rule? I ask. Yeah, do that, he says, grinning. Say I said that.

**

Send Help hits theaters Friday. Twinless is currently streaming on Hulu.