Project Hail Mary feels like E.T. for a new generation

The film adaptation of Andy Weir's Project Hail Mary, starring Ryan Gosling, is now in theatres and centers on a stranded astronaut who forms a crucial friendship with an alien.

The film adaptation of Andy Weir's novel Project Hail Mary is now in theatres. Ryan Gosling stars as Ryland Grace, a middle school science teacher who wakes up alone on a spaceship with no memory. He was recruited by Eva Stratt (played by Sandra Hüller) to join a mission addressing a substance that is harming the sun. Grace later encounters an alien he names Rocky, voiced and puppeteered by James Ortiz. Key details: - Ryan Gosling plays Ryland Grace, a science teacher-turned-astronaut who awakens with amnesia aboard a spacecraft. - Grace was recruited by Eva Stratt (Sandra Hüller) to join a team addressing a sun-threatening substance. - He meets an alien called Rocky, voiced and puppeteered by James Ortiz, and their friendship is central to the story. - Andy Weir wanted Drew Goddard to write the screenplay; production waited until Goddard was available. - Weir and Goddard emphasized scientific accuracy and the story's themes of empathy and human connection. Summary: The film pairs large-scale visual spectacle with a character-focused story about cooperation and compassion, and the filmmakers say Ryan Gosling's performance helps carry much of the emotional weight. Undetermined at this time.