Ryan Gosling will star in a film adaptation of Andy Weir’s science thriller novel Project Hail Mary, and there’s much to look forward to.
Warning! Very, very mild spoilers for Project Hail Mary’s premise.
Featured image: Ryan Gosling in First Man. Credit: Universal Pictures
It’s in the title; Film Stories. You’re most likely on this website to read about films or maybe a TV show every once in a while. Maybe you’ve bought one of our magazines (and gawd bless you for doing so). Yet here, I’m talking about a book, albeit one currently being adapted into a movie: it’s Andy Weir’s Project Hail Mary.
If either name rings a bell, it’s probably because Weir also penned the novel Ridley Scott’s excellent The Martian was adapted from (Ridley Scott’s last great film to date? Discuss…).
Project Hail Mary is currently being edited together after wrapping filming in October 2024. The film will star Ryan Gosling – who previously went to space in First Man – with Phil Lord and Christopher Miller directing.
The movie version is due to hit screens in March 2026 and apparently a trailer was shown at CinemaCon earlier this year. It hasn’t been publicly released yet, but according to reports, the trailer nailed the book’s unique tone of melancholy and comedy. Furthermore, rumours of positive responses to material so far mean a late 2025 release hasn’t been entirely ruled out.
According to Deadline, Gosling also teased the scale of the project at CinemaCon. “We tried to put it on a TV once — it wouldn’t fit,” the actor told the crowd. Amazon MGM is behind the project, but clearly this is a movie designed for the big screen.
So, what is Project Hail Mary about? I’ll be talking about the book and film’s premise a little here, so if you wish to go in completely blind, turn away now. There won’t be any major plot spoilers – nothing that hasn’t been revealed by the synopsis.
The film follows Ryland Grace, a high school teacher who wakes up in outer space. He can’t remember his own name or why he’s on a spaceship, but he slowly begins to piece together what’s going on.
Turns out, the sun is dying. So far, so Sunshine. The sun has been infected by something that jumps from star to star, infecting them one by one. The sun is getting dimmer on Earth, which will eventually – in 30-something years – lead to an ice age that would kill all life on our planet.
But what can Grace do about it? In the book, the story is told in the present and flashbacks, as he remembers more about the mission he’s been sent on. We don’t know if the film will adapt the same structure or whether it’ll go for more traditional, linear storytelling, of course. The book tends to highlight Grace’s loneliness, both in and out of space. We learn little about his personal life, but he feels a sense of responsibility for the kids in his class.
It’s what motivates him during his mission; he has to save Earth for the kiddos. If he doesn’t, they have no future. It hits pretty close to home.
The similarities between Project Hail Mary and The Martian are obvious. Weir’s tone of writing is comedic, with plenty of scientific detail sprinkled in and constant reminders that death isn’t just a possibility, but a likelihood.
Both novels – and films – feature an astronaut, wildly out of their depth, faced with crushing loneliness, almost certain death and the kind of danger most of us will never have to deal with. Ryland Grace and Mark Watney are similar in their voice and personality; they’re quick to crack a joke, clever, but also prone to self-deprecating humour. Gosling’s inherent charm should fit the character like a glove.
Drew Goddard also connects the two movies. Project Hail Mary will be Goddard’s second time adapting an Andy Weir novel after he penned the script for The Martian. The film will also bring Lord and Miller back into the directing world for the first time since 2014’s 22 Jump Street. The pair have been focusing on producing in the last decade, especially after they departed Solo: A Star Wars Story midway through filming, citing “creative differences.”
In many ways, Project Hail Mary offers Lord and Miller the opportunity to make the space epic they may have wanted to make with Solo. Although based on a novel, we’re willing to bet that directing Project Hail Mary is a more creatively free undertaking than making a Star Wars film.
Whereas The Martian was about resilience, Project Hail Mary is about sacrifice, the thing the best of us are willing to do for the greater good. This might sound like a spoiler, but it’s not what you think. Things aren’t looking particularly good for Grace or the people of Earth, but there’s an overall hopeful note to Weir’s writing. Death is a constant presence, but not necessarily the only ending possible.
We haven’t seen any footage of Project Hail Mary, but having read the book, there’s something Oppenheimer-esque about the story. Just as Christopher Nolan’s Oscar-winning epic held a mirror to our own role in dooming the world, Project Hail Mary asks us if we’re doing enough to help ourselves. Would we be willing to do whatever it takes to save our planet, regardless of the price? The terrifying thing is, I’m not sure we would.
The heavy stuff aside, Project Hail Mary will hopefully be a film that draws audiences to the cinema. It leans much more heavily into the fantastical side of science fiction than The Martian, and hopefully Ryan Gosling is enough to get people to buy a ticket to join him on a space adventure.
Then again, look at what happened to The Fall Guy. Still stings, that.
Still, we can’t rely on Tom Cruise to save cinema by hanging from the side of a plane or running across rooftops forever. We need films that have mainstream appeal without requiring you to watch hours and hours of previous films to keep up, but that can still deliver something of substance too. Or at least, this writer sees that as the best case scenario. Give me adventure and spectacle, but allow me to also chew on the themes if I choose to.
Project Hail Mary has all the right ingredients to not just be a great film, but a story cinema could really use. Its themes remind us of our own situation, but its genre elements should keep it from being too preachy, especially when combined with the same tone that made The Martian so entertaining and memorable.
Fingers crossed.
Project Hail Mary is currently scheduled to be in US cinemas 20th March 2026 with a UK date to be confirmed.
