When a Simple Trip Became a Wild Ride
Netflix’s The Package (2018) arrived with little warning — a teen comedy tucked among the streamer’s growing slate of raunchy summer adventures. But what no one expected was just how bizarrely heartfelt this film would turn out to be. What starts as a camping trip gone horribly wrong — involving an ill-fated prank and a lost “package” (quite literally a severed private part) — evolves into a surprisingly funny yet strangely touching story about friendship, loyalty, and the consequences of stupidity.
It’s one of those movies that shouldn’t work on paper — a darkly comic, almost slapstick premise that somehow finds emotional grounding through its characters. Directed by Jake Szymanski and written by Kevin Burrows and Matt Mider, The Package may wear the mask of absurdity, but behind it beats the heart of a film about growing up, taking responsibility, and the awkward resilience of youth.
When Chaos Drives the Story Forward
The film opens innocently enough: five high school friends — Sean (Daniel Doheny), Donnie (Luke Spencer Roberts), Jeremy (Eduardo Franco), Sarah (Geraldine Viswanathan), and Becky (Sadie Calvano) — set out for a spring break camping trip. It’s meant to be a chance for bonding, flirting, and making memories before adulthood takes over. But within hours, disaster strikes.
After a night of heavy drinking and juvenile pranks, one careless moment with a pocket knife leads to Jeremy’s worst nightmare: a self-inflicted accident that leaves him without his most prized possession. Panic sets in, chaos ensues, and the group embarks on a desperate mission to save both Jeremy and the severed… well, “package.” From there, The Package transforms into a road-trip comedy filled with misadventures, medical chases, and emotional reckoning.
While the humor leans outrageous — think Superbad meets Weekend at Bernie’s — the film surprises with its warmth. Amid all the crude jokes and absurd situations, the story becomes a test of friendship. Every character, especially Sarah and Sean, faces their own coming-of-age realization: that real connection often comes through moments of crisis.
Geraldine Viswanathan: The Breakout Who Grounded the Madness
At the heart of this wild ride is Geraldine Viswanathan, who had just earned praise for Blockers (2018) and was emerging as one of Hollywood’s most promising young actors. In The Package, she plays Sarah, the sensible one of the group — the moral compass trying to keep everyone grounded while navigating the chaos.
For Viswanathan, an Australian actor of Indian descent, the film came at a pivotal time in her career. In interviews, she revealed that The Package was her chance to break out of “the sidekick” mold and show comedic range while staying emotionally real. Her role demanded timing and restraint — in a movie that constantly flirts with outrageousness, she had to keep it anchored in sincerity.
She described the shoot as both hilarious and exhausting. “We laughed all day, but it was physically demanding,” she said. “We were running through forests, climbing rocks, and doing take after take in mud and heat. The energy had to stay high even when we were all half-asleep.”
Her grounded performance became the glue holding the film together. While much of the humor centers on Jeremy’s accident and the group’s chaotic journey, Sarah’s quiet leadership and chemistry with Sean give The Package its emotional core.
The Boys and Their Bond — Comedy Born from Real Friendship
The male cast — Daniel Doheny, Luke Spencer Roberts, and Eduardo Franco — brought a raw, authentic energy to the film. Their off-screen friendship bled naturally into their performances. Franco, already a fan favorite for his eccentric roles in American Vandal and The Binge, leaned into his signature deadpan humor. Doheny, on the other hand, played Sean with awkward charm — the friend who wants to do the right thing but always gets in his own way.
During production, the group reportedly spent time camping together before filming to build natural chemistry. Director Jake Szymanski, known for Mike and Dave Need Wedding Dates and 7 Days in Hell, encouraged improvisation. Many of the funniest exchanges — particularly during the frantic chase sequences — were unscripted, born from genuine reactions and improvisational banter.
Eduardo Franco shared in an interview that some scenes had to be re-shot multiple times because the actors couldn’t stop laughing. “You can’t film a scene about carrying your friend’s severed junk through the woods without cracking up,” he joked. “At some point, it just becomes so absurd you surrender to it.”
When Comedy Meets Carnage
What sets The Package apart from typical teen comedies is how well it balances gross-out humor with visual storytelling. The cinematography, by Joseph L. White, captures the lush wilderness of British Columbia — a serene, natural backdrop that contrasts hilariously with the chaos of its characters.
The prosthetics and special effects team also deserve a nod. The film’s central prop — “the package” itself — had to look real enough to sell the joke but not so graphic that it crossed a line. The team reportedly went through multiple versions, testing materials and reactions to get it right. Even the actors joked about how surreal it was to perform scenes where a fake appendage was treated like a sacred relic.
Director Szymanski also experimented with pacing, blending slapstick with slow-motion tension. One of the film’s most iconic sequences — the frantic race against time to preserve the package in an ice chest — feels almost like an action scene, underscored by absurdity. It’s a rare kind of comedy that manages to be both ridiculous and cinematic.
Fan Reactions and the Meme Legacy
When The Package dropped on Netflix, it quickly became a viral sensation. Audiences around the world couldn’t stop talking about its outrageous premise. Memes flooded social media, often poking fun at the absurdity of the plot — yet many viewers also praised the film for its sincerity beneath the madness.
Film critics were divided. Some dismissed it as juvenile shock humor, while others appreciated its commitment to pushing boundaries. Over time, The Package developed a small cult following — particularly among younger audiences who admired its unfiltered humor and strong ensemble chemistry.
In India, where youth comedies often toe the line between bold and censored, The Package gained a quiet fan base among students streaming it late at night. Its themes — the unpredictability of friendship, the fear of failure, and the absurdity of growing up — resonated universally.
Behind the Laughter — The Struggles of Making It Work
Though the film looks effortless, production wasn’t without hiccups. Weather disruptions delayed outdoor shoots, and the remote forest locations made logistics a nightmare. The cast endured long days in cold conditions, often performing physically demanding scenes while maintaining comedic energy.
There were also creative debates about tone. Szymanski wanted to ensure that the humor didn’t become mean-spirited or exploitative. Balancing empathy with absurdity required careful editing. Test screenings reportedly helped fine-tune the pacing — trimming moments that felt too heavy-handed while preserving the charm.
Off-screen, the camaraderie among the cast grew genuine. Between takes, they played cards, shared stories, and bonded over their shared exhaustion. In many ways, their real friendships mirrored the themes of the film: sticking together even when everything goes hilariously wrong.
The Little Movie That Refused to Play It Safe
The Package may not have been a box-office blockbuster (it was a Netflix exclusive), but it became something rarer — a conversation starter. It proved that even the most absurd premise could carry heart if treated with the right balance of humor and sincerity.
Looking back, it stands as one of those rare comedies that dared to be unashamedly weird, yet deeply human at its core. Beneath the jokes and chaos, it reminds us that friendship — like life — often survives only because we keep laughing, no matter how ridiculous the ride gets.