Whalefall, a new movie about a guy getting swallowed up by a whale and struggling to survive the ordeal, might seem a bit far-fetched... except that one man is still around who went through the same thing...
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Whalefall, which stars Austin Abrams fresh off his monster hit Resident Evil (still in theaters), wades into theaters today (Oct. 16). Based on the novel of the same name by author Daniel Kraus, the film follows a man (Abrams) shalllowed by a massive sperm whale and his ordeal fighting his way out. To be honest, I caught the trailer right before seeing Resident Evil and kinda balked at the premise.
Yet something along those lines really happened just a few years back.
Veteran lobster diver Michael Packard (who the novel and film isn't based on) recalled the moment he ended up in a humpback whale's mouth back in 2021 off Herring Cove Beach in Cape Cod, Massachusetts, while going in for his second lobster dive of the morning.
"All of a sudden, I felt this huge shove and the next thing I knew it was completely black," Packard recalled to the Cape Cod Times back then. "And I'm thinking to myself, 'This is it, Michael. This is it. This is how you die,'" he added.
However, the humpback whale eventually swam toward the surface, and it "started shaking its head and getting all erratic." The then 56-year-old noticed sunlight and the ocean's surface, managing to escape.
Man Previously Trapped in Whale's Mouth Screens Whalefall: "I Could Feel the Tongue Of My Whale"
You'd think seeing the trailer to Whalefall might give the lobster diver PTSD (he admitted it gave him "shiver bumps"). Instead, he seemed pretty chill about it all, telling CNN he "could totally relate" to the new movie's premise. To top it off, he even checked out the movie for a special screening... alongside the film's star.
Packard also admitted to the outlet that he grabbed a few brews before the screening in an effort to keep his composure during scenes that would no doubt reignite memories.
Honestly, it doesn't seem like the beers took the edge off too much. He admitted to CNN that he had vivid feelings during a few key moments in the film.
"He was there where the tongue was contracting, and I could feel the tongue of my whale contracting on me, and the movements of this giant animal, so I could totally relate," Packard gushed.
Well, sounds like a guy who's been through it is signing off on the new movie's authenticity.
Whalefall, which also stars Josh Brolin, splashed into theaters today.
