Project Hail Mary is a 2026 American science fiction film produced and directed by Phil Lord and Christopher Miller and written by Drew Goddard, based on the 2021 novel by Andy Weir. It stars Ryan Gosling, who also produced the film; Sandra Hüller, James Ortiz, and Lionel Boyce appear in supporting roles. The film follows Ryland Grace, a man who awakens on an interstellar spacecraft with no memory of how he got there.
Project Hail Mary premiered in London on March 9, 2026, and was released in the United States by Amazon MGM Studios on March 20, 2026, with Sony Pictures Releasing International releasing in other territories. The film received highly positive reviews and has grossed $538 million, becoming the third highest-grossing film of 2026.
Plot
In 2032, Ryland Grace awakens from an induced coma on an interstellar spacecraft. Initially erratic with retrograde amnesia, Grace learns that he is the sole survivor of the three-person crew, in a distant solar system light-years from Earth.
Grace slowly remembers he is an American middle-school science teacher and former molecular biologist. Years ago, scientists observe an infrared line, named the "Petrova Line", forming from the Sun to Venus. They discover that a microorganism known as "astrophage"[a] is proliferating on the Sun's surface, causing it to dim, and predict it will cause a catastrophic global cooling within thirty years. Government agent Eva Stratt recruits Grace and other scientists to study astrophage.
Grace discovers that astrophage are single-celled organisms impenetrable to electromagnetic radiation. The astrophage breed on Venus, feeding on the planet's carbon-dioxide atmosphere and energy from the Sun. The Petrova line is created by astrophage propulsive emissions as they migrate between the Sun and Venus. Their emissions can be utilized to construct an incredibly efficient but dangerous spacecraft engine. The astrophage have infected other stars within Earth's solar neighborhood; Stratt discloses Project Hail Mary, an international effort to send a crew to Tau Ceti, the only undimmed nearby star, to investigate. It is a suicide mission; the Hail Mary spacecraft can only carry enough astrophage fuel for a one-way trip, but the crew's research will be sent back to Earth via probes.
In the present, as Grace approaches Tau Ceti, he sees an alien spacecraft. The spacecraft, which docks with Hail Mary, is made of solid xenon that Grace dubs "xenonite". The ship's pilot is a rock-like, five-legged alien from a planet in the 40 Eridani A system. Grace names the alien "Rocky" after Rocky Balboa; he deduces that Eridians have no eyes but "see" via echolocation, and creates a machine translation system to interpret Rocky's musical chords-like speech. Rocky is a mechanical engineer and also the sole survivor of a mission to stop the astrophage. Neither can survive in the other's atmosphere, so Rocky enters Hail Mary using a small, pressurized ball of xenonite as a space suit.
Following Tau Ceti's Petrova line, Grace and Rocky discover that the planet Tau Ceti e—which they name "Adrian" after Rocky's mate—harbors an organism that preys on astrophage, controlling their population. After learning that Grace cannot return home, Rocky offers enough astrophage to refuel Hail Mary. While gathering the organism from the upper atmosphere of Adrian, a fuel leak causes an uncontrollable spin that renders Grace unconscious. Rocky breaks his spacesuit and saves Grace but is severely injured. While Rocky recovers in hibernation, Grace learns how to selectively breed the astrophage-consuming organism—which he names "Taumoeba"—to survive in Venus's atmosphere. Rocky revives, and he and Grace part as friends to their home planets.
In the past, Grace meets Hail Mary's commander, engineer, and scientist, and their backups. While experimenting with astrophage, an accident kills the scientist and backup three days before launch. With no time to train a replacement, Stratt asks Grace to take the place of the deceased scientists. When Grace refuses, Stratt has him drugged and forcibly put on the Hail Mary.
During the trip to Earth, Grace discovers that the Taumoeba have evolved to pass through their xenonite containers and are eating Hail Mary's astrophage fuel. Grace repairs the problem on his ship but realizes that Rocky's ship is made entirely of xenonite, allowing the Taumoeba to consume all of his fuel. Grace chooses to save Rocky and the Eridians over returning home, sending the Taumoeba and his research to Earth via the probes.
Stratt receives the probes, allowing humanity to stop the astrophage. Grace, having travelled with Rocky to the Eridians' homeworld, now lives in an artificial biodome on their planet. Rocky tells him that Eridian scientists have finished preparing Hail Mary to return to Earth. While contemplating the news, Grace begins another day of teaching science to Eridian children.
Cast
_(53388157347)_(cropped).jpg)
- Ryan Gosling as Ryland Grace, a middle-school science teacher and former molecular biologist on a mission to save humanity[6]
- Sandra Hüller as Eva Stratt, the head of the international task force behind Project Hail Mary[7]
- James Ortiz as Rocky, an alien Grace encounters on his journey.[8]
The character was effected through a puppet controlled by a team of
five puppeteers led by Ortiz, dubbed the "Rockyteers", with Ortiz also
providing the artificial voice assigned to him.[9]
- Ortiz also has an uncredited role as a television presenter[10]
- Lionel Boyce as Carl, a security personnel
- Ken Leung as Yao Li-Jie, the Chinese commander of the Hail Mary spacecraft
- Milana Vayntrub as Olesya Ilyukhina, a Russian engineer on board the Hail Mary
- Priya Kansara as the voice of Mary, the Hail Mary's onboard computer[8]
- Malachi Kirby as Martin Dubois, the original scientist of the Hail Mary[11]
- Liz Kingsman as Annie Shapiro, a backup scientist of the Hail Mary
- Mia Soteriou as Dr. Browne
- Orion Lee as Dr. Li
Additionally, Eunice Huthart (the film's stunt coordinator), Damien de Froberville (co-president of Sony Pictures Animation), Ray Porter (the audiobook narrator), and Meryl Streep provided the rejected alternate voices for Rocky.[12]
Production
Development
In March 2020, Metro-Goldwyn-Mayer was nearing a deal to acquire adaptation rights to the then-upcoming Andy Weir novel Project Hail Mary (2021), with Ryan Gosling set to star in and produce the film.[6] The rights for the novel were acquired for $3 million.[13] In May 2020, Phil Lord and Christopher Miller were hired to direct and produce the film.[14] Due to Lord and Miller being unable to work on the screenplay themselves because of commitments to Spider-Man: Across the Spider-Verse (2023), Drew Goddard (who previously adapted Weir's 2011 novel The Martian into a 2015 film) was hired to write the screenplay the next month.[15][16] In April 2024, Amazon MGM Studios, which acquired Metro-Goldwyn-Mayer in 2022,[17] announced a possible 2026 release window for the film.[18] In May 2024, Sandra Hüller joined the cast of the film, with Greig Fraser hired as cinematographer.[19] In June 2024, Milana Vayntrub joined the cast.[20]
Filming
.jpg)
Principal photography began on June 3, 2024, in the United Kingdom and wrapped on October 26, 2024.[21][22] Filming occurred at Shepperton Studios.[23] Location filming took place at the South Parade Pier in Portsmouth,[24] the Mullard Radio Astronomy Observatory in Cambridge,[25] and Durdle Door and Man o' War Cove in Dorset.[26][27]
The movie was "Filmed for IMAX"[b] by using large-sensor Arri Alexa 65 cameras, which provide 6.5K or 20 MP of resolution, with an aspect ratio of 2.1:1,[29] utilizing the whole sensor with anamorphic lenses rotated by 90 degrees to achieve the IMAX standard 1.43:1 aspect ratio. For regular presentations, the common 2:1 format was derived by cropping the top and bottom of the IMAX image. The film switches between taller and wider aspect ratios. When a scene takes place in the present, a taller aspect ratio is used – 1.43:1 for IMAX 15/70mm or Dual Laser, 1.85:1 for Xenon or Single Laser and 2.00:1 for non-IMAX presentations. For scenes in the past, an aspect ratio of 2.39:1, a standard ratio for anamorphic process cinematography, was achieved with the regular use of anamorphic lenses.[30]
In an interview with The Hollywood Reporter, Miller mentioned that no greenscreen was used in the movie, with the entire set being shot practically.[31] Miller had previously stated that VFX was used to depict the spaceship from the outside, while shots of Gosling in space were shot against a black or varying color backdrop.[32]
NASA provided support through both the input of scientific experts and astronaut Kjell Lindgren visiting Gosling during filming to share insights on human spaceflight.[33]
Post-production
The film's visual effects were provided by Framestore (which also collaborated on the film adaptation of The Martian),[34] Industrial Light & Magic (ILM), Sony Pictures Imageworks, BUF and Wylie Co. VFX, with Paul Lambert and Mags Sarnowska serving as visual effects supervisors.[35] Joel Negron edited the film.[1]
While puppeteer James Ortiz voiced Rocky during filming with Gosling, it was initially thought that he would be replaced by a more high profile actor. However, Lord and Miller felt that Ortiz's performance could not be improved upon during screenings of the film.[36] Lord praised the collaboration between visual and practical effects in the creation of the character Rocky's performance:
Rocky was built and designed by the legendary Neal Scanlan and his creature shop and is performed by puppeteering legend James Ortiz and his team, who were on set with Ryan in every scene. Rocky's performance is a beautiful collaboration between the James and the other Rockyteers on set and the wonderful animators at Framestore led by the funny soulful Arslan Elver.[37]
The digitally produced movie was transferred to film stock and then re-digitized in order to achieve the "warmth" of analog film.[30] The initial test screening of the film was 3 hours and 45 minutes long and was cut down to the final length due to feedback from the screenings.[38]
Music
It was announced at San Diego Comic Con that Daniel Pemberton would score the film. Pemberton previously worked with Lord and Miller on Spider-Man: Into the Spider-Verse (2018) and its 2023 sequel, which they produced. This is the first film Lord and Miller have directed to not be scored by Mark Mothersbaugh.[39]
The score, consisting of 38 tracks, was released digitally on March 20, 2026.[40] The film also included fourteen other songs, including "Sign of the Times" by Harry Styles, "Two of Us" by the Beatles, “Rainbows” by Dennis Wilson and "Gracias a la vida" sung by Mercedes Sosa.[41]
Marketing and release
.jpg)
The film's title is a reference to the Hail Mary pass in American football, a last ditch, desperate effort to score with slim chances of success.[42] The first trailer was released on June 30, 2025.[43] It was the most viewed trailer for any original movie in the first week of its release, accumulating 400 million views globally.[44] Lego released a model of the Hail Mary spacecraft on March 1, 2026, as part of the Lego Icons series.[45]
Project Hail Mary was released on March 20, 2026, by Amazon MGM Studios in the United States and Canada, and Sony Pictures Releasing International in all other countries. It was also released in IMAX theaters, with a 1.43:1 aspect ratio.[46][47][48][49]
Reception
Box office
As of April 17, 2026, Project Hail Mary has grossed $269 million in the United States and Canada, and $269 million in other territories, for a worldwide total of $538 million.[4][5] While Variety estimated that most films costing $200 million to produce would need to gross at least $500 million to break even, Amazon MGM says it uses a different metric, where the big screen provides a halo effect that boosts subscriptions and viewership on Amazon Prime Video.[50]
In the United States and Canada, Project Hail Mary was released alongside Ready or Not 2: Here I Come and The Pout-Pout Fish, and was projected to gross $63–65 million in North America from 4,007 theaters in its opening weekend.[50] Initially, publications estimated that the film would gross $45–55 million.[51] After grossing $31 million on opening day, including $12 million in previews, the film debuted to $80.6 million in the United States and Canada [52] and $60.4 million overseas for a worldwide total of $141 million, [53] becoming Amazon MGM Studios' biggest debut to date.[52] In its second weekend the film made $54.1 million (a drop of just 32.8%), remaining in first.[54] It was dethroned by newcomer The Super Mario Galaxy Movie in its third weekend, though it continued to hold well, grossing $31.7 million.[55] In Japan, the film becoming the highest-grossing foreign film of 2026 in terms of box office revenue attendance on its first day of release.[56]
Critical response
Metacritic review
breakdown (unweighted)
On the review aggregator website Rotten Tomatoes, 94% of 387 critics' reviews are positive. The website's consensus reads: "A visually dazzling space odyssey that's carried along effortlessly by the gravitational pull of Ryan Gosling at his most winning, Project Hail Mary is a near-miraculous fusion of smarts and heart."[57] Metacritic, which uses a weighted average, assigned the film a score of 77 out of 100, based on 60 critics, indicating "generally favorable" reviews.[58] Audiences polled by CinemaScore gave the film an average grade of "A" on an A+ to F scale.[59]
G. Allen Johnson of the San Francisco Chronicle deemed it "a masterpiece of a family popcorn movie, with eye-popping hand-crafted production design and outstanding creature design and puppetry work."[60] In a three-and-a half out of five rating, Randy Myers of San Jose Mercury News said, "While you can't help but marvel at the visuals and applaud the commitment of Gosling's endearing performance, what also makes Project Hail Mary so gosh darn lovable is that it imbues us with child-like wonder from scenes that pay homage to such classics as E.T., Flight of the Navigator and, yes, Rocky."[61]
Robbie Collin of The Daily Telegraph concluded in his review, "Does it have many original ideas of its own? Perhaps not. But its greatest hits mixtape of other people's has been compiled with such flair – as well as a sound comprehension of why they worked so well the first time – that it's hard not to be swept up regardless."[62] Barry Hertz of The Globe and Mail shared a similar opinion, writing, "At almost every turn, Project Hail Mary attempts to convince you that it is groundbreaking, innovative filmmaking. But in actuality, the movie lands as a grand act of cinematic recycling – the fusing together of familiar, comforting bits and pieces into something determined to please crowds and warm hearts."[63]
Amy Nicholson of The Los Angeles Times wrote, "While Stanley Kubrick's unsentimental 2001: A Space Odyssey inspired the iPad, Lord and Miller want to inspire a better version of us."[64] Brian Truitt of USA Today gave the film a four out of four rating, stating that "Project Hail Mary is one of those old-school popcorn movies with big ideas, the kind of film that Steven Spielberg and George Lucas would have made back in the day and kids of all ages would have obsessed over and bought the toys."[65] Ryan Cooper of The American Prospect wrote that the film portrayed a "shockingly realistic view of heroism" and was "one of the rare films that is quite a bit better than the book."[66]
Peter Bradshaw wrote in The Guardian: "Gosling is an effortlessly charming screen player, and he keeps it watchable, though the film itself has moments of dullness and a sort of puppyish silliness... Perhaps refreshingly, the film doesn't aim for the stunned awe and rapture of, say, Christopher Nolan's Interstellar or even Jon Spaihts' underrated Passengers, but it does have the classic sci-fi spacecraft tropes: the huge, mysterious architecture with its vertiginous tunnels in which legacy pop music is played to soothe the inhabitants."[67] Grand Valley State University anthropology professor Deana Weibel praised Grace's intellectual humility in the film.[68]
Nicholas Barber of BBC named it one of the best films of 2026 and wrote: "Project Hail Mary is an unusual science-fiction blockbuster in that it's mostly about people using their brains to solve problems [...] Does that approach sound a bit dry and academic? If so, rest assured that Project Hail Mary is touching and inspiring – and surprisingly fun [...] it's directed by Phil Lord and Christopher Miller, who take a complicated, potentially bleak narrative and make it as fast-paced and cheerful as their animated hit The Lego Movie. Meanwhile, Ryan Gosling brings all of his goofball charm to the role of an amnesiac biologist who is trying to save the world."[69]
Accolades
| Award | Date of ceremony | Category | Recipient(s) | Result | Ref. |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Guild of Music Supervisors Awards | February 28, 2026 | Best Music Supervision in a Trailer (Film) | Vanessa Jorge Perry and Tyler Torrison ("Project Hail Mary – Official Trailer") | Nominated | [70] |
No comments:
Post a Comment