Ryan Gosling's 'Project Hail Mary' reveals first 5 minutes, alien Rocky
'I was like, 'Wow, that character is pretty cool. I didn't realize how awesome that character is!' ' Weir said at a Comic-Con panel on Saturday, July 26, for Chris Miller and Phil Lord's adaptation of the 2021 sci-fi novel.
Gosling executive produces and stars in 'Project Hail Mary' (in theaters March 20, 2026) as Ryland Grace, a middle-school teacher recruited to examine a mysterious substance that's dimming our sun. He soon becomes an active participant in a desperate attempt to find a new planet so that mankind won't go extinct.
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Filmmakers debuted new footage as well as the first five minutes of the movie. Bearded and unkempt like a 'space caveman,' Ryland is woken up from a cryo slumber on a spaceship when a tube is taken out of his throat, and he freaks out as he doesn't know who he is or why something's trying to put food paste in his mouth.
It's hilarious at first, as his muscles don't work and he flops around on the floor. But the situation turns more serious when he gets his wits about him and starts to explore the craft. 'Where am I?' he says as he turns around and looks out into the farthest reaches of the cosmos.
'This film is about a scared guy who had to do something impossible,' Gosling said. 'I was a scared guy who had to do something impossible.'
The actor added that he connected with Ryland's reluctance. 'Aside from the fact he has a doctorate in molecular biology, he's an ordinary person in an extraordinary situation. He reacts to a lot of things (the way) I feel like I might, he's terrified of the task at hand. He's someone on Earth who has given up on himself and was given a chance to believe in himself again. He somehow finds the courage to put one foot in front of the other and keep going.'
Then there's Rocky, a space alien made of rock that Ryland meets and befriends in space. Even though he doesn't have eyes or a face, 'he comes alive in such a way where you would die for this character,' Miller says. Although they want to keep Rocky a secret just yet, Gosling and Co. did show a scene where Rocky's adorable little rock hands give the Earth man a model of him and his ship.
Screenwriter Drew Goddard appreciated 'the soul' of Weir's writing, as well as the high stakes and humor. 'To me, this movie is about the power of science, the power of teaching, the power of learning. It speaks to who we are and who we can be.'
Weir also was a producer on the movie ('I got to be a big shot') and helped out with any science questions. He pointed out that any numbers audiences see on screen or on a whiteboard, 'I put time into that.
'For a nerd like me to spend all day looking at sets and then get math problems handed to me, it doesn't get any better.'
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