Amazon MGM Is Racing to Greenlight a Project Hail Mary Sequel—Here’s What We Know

Let's talk Project Hail Mary, the sci-fi movie that's somehow managed to turn Amazon MGM Studios into something Hollywood hasn't seen in ages—a legit new major studio that's, well, actually succeeding. The film dropped with all the usual hype, but this time, the box office is showing up too. Is this the real birth of Amazon as a movie powerhouse?

“Most ambitious thing I'll ever make”

Ryan Gosling, who stars (and, honestly, carries this movie), recently sounded off during a New York screening:

'Six years ago, I got the manuscript. [It's] the most ambitious thing I'll ever make; it seemed impossible. It was too good not to give it a shot. Six years later, we did it. Here we are, we're all back in theaters. It's not your job to keep them open, it's our job to make things that make it worth you coming out.'

Not only a solid plug for the movie, but also, hey, a rare bit of honesty about what studios should actually be doing.

How We Got Here

You might remember that Gosling didn't just sign on to act; he was actually there at the beginning with former Sony exec Amy Pascal, helping get this whole thing off the ground. The rights moved around a bit until Amazon bought MGM (remember that? Old legacy name, new-tech money), and then they locked down the distribution for Project Hail Mary. The rest is, as they say, a pile of ticket stubs and some genuinely impressive box office numbers.

Now What? The Sequel Question

If you've seen the movie, you know it's got that crowd-pleasing, four-quadrant thing going: young, old, dudes, women, everybody. And let's be real, the alien in this movie is about as lovable as sci-fi supporting characters get. So it's no shock that Amazon MGM is feeling pretty pleased with themselves. The usual studio question follows: do we have a franchise here?

Here's what's interesting: according to folks who talked to The Hollywood Reporter, Amazon MGM isn't shutting down the idea of a sequel. And this is where it gets a little... familiar, if you've followed movie history:

• Jurassic Park hit huge.
• Universal wanted more.
• Michael Crichton hadn't written a sequel, so they nudged him to write The Lost World, just so they could make another film.

Now, with Project Hail Mary, Andy Weir (the writer behind the original novel) hasn't ever done a sequel to any of his books, but apparently he's thought about it for this one. The report says he's kicked around ideas but never nailed down enough for an actual book. Still, Amazon likes keeping him in charge of the story—makes sense, given how quickly franchises can nose-dive when someone else takes the wheel.

Fun fact: Both Weir and Gosling share the same representation (pays to have friends in the business, huh?). And if Gosling is actually in the producer chair for a sequel, I'd honestly expect him to keep the quality level up—he's no stranger to making sure his projects don't suck, even when he's playing with toy dolls (Barbie shout-out).

Critical and Audience Buzz

If you think this is just studio spin, the numbers say otherwise. Rotten Tomatoes has critics at 95% and an even more glowing 96% from audiences. Our own editor-in-chief, Chris Bumbray, gave it a 9 out of 10 and didn't hold back on the praise:

'It's really an impeccably made movie, with everyone involved doing superlative work, including Daniel Pemberton, who contributes a strong score. It's the kind of movie that deserves to become the next Sinners, so hopefully audiences will give it a shot. It's upbeat and leaves you walking out of the theater feeling optimistic — which I think all of us could use in these rather somber times.'

Bottom Line

So, will Project Hail Mary get a sequel? No promises yet, but you can bet the studio is at least brainstorming. If it does happen, hopefully it stays true to what made the first one work: good source material, a strong creative team, and no rushing for a cash-grab follow-up. We're watching closely—because let's face it, if this really is Amazon MGM's Jurassic Park moment, it's about to get even more interesting from here.