Ryan Gosling Confirms When Project Hail Mary Leaves Theaters—And It’s Good News
With Project Hail Mary still rocketing among the year’s top grossers, Ryan Gosling teases good news for theatergoers about how long the sci-fi hit will stay on the big screen.
Not every day do you see a big-screen sci-fi gamble pay off, but 'Project Hail Mary' is still cleaning up at the box office—and now, thanks to Ryan Gosling, we know it’ll be orbiting theaters even longer than planned.
Gosling Makes it Official: More Time to See 'Project Hail Mary'
At this year’s CinemaCon, Amazon MGM Studios threw a little victory party for themselves after 'Project Hail Mary' blasted past $525 million worldwide. No, that number isn’t a typo—over half a billion for a semi-nerdy space adventure based on Andy Weir’s book. Studio boss Mike Hopkins was quick to brag about that milestone (can you blame him?) in front of a room full of theater owners and industry types.
Gosling, who stars as space teacher Dr. Ryland Grace, hopped on stage with directors Phil Lord and Christopher Miller to soak up the applause. He confirmed, straight-up, that the movie’s theatrical window is getting an extension. So if you still haven’t seen Gosling team up with his blob-shaped alien pal (Rocky, in case you forgot) on the biggest screen possible, apparently the universe is giving you a second chance.
No one can accuse Gosling of being ungrateful, either. He handed out flowers to the crowd—yep, actual flowers—and even scribbled out a thank-you note for one woman, which she then passed around like a high school yearbook. If only all victory laps came with bouquets.
'It’s because you believed in it.'
That’s Lord and Miller tipping their hats to theater owners as the film cruised past yet another box office record. Might be a little over the top, but hey, if you just made 'the historic run' they have, you might gush a bit too.
Amazon MGM’s Big Plans—and a Sci-Fi Plot for Anyone Who Missed It
Mike Hopkins also used the CinemaCon stage to reassure theater owners—yes, the company is actually sticking to its plan of releasing 15 movies a year in theaters. And in a bit of business-speak analogy, Hopkins claimed their ambition for theatrical films is just 'in the top half of the first inning'. Translation: they want more box office home runs like this one.
In case you’re fuzzy on the source material, here’s the quick-and-dirty plot breakdown:
- Gosling plays Dr. Ryland Grace, a school teacher-slash-former biologist who wakes up on a spaceship with amnesia.
- After his memory starts to come back, he remembers he’s basically humanity’s last hope, sent on a mission to save Earth.
- He ends up befriending Rocky, a rock-shaped alien (who is weirdly endearing), and they realize their missions overlap—so it turns into a sci-fi buddy movie to save both their species.
The brains behind the camera are just as notable: Lord and Miller (the comedy duo most people know from the 'Jump Street' movies and 'Spider-Verse') directed, with Drew Goddard on script duty. The producing team is stacked too: Andy Weir himself, Lord, Miller, Gosling, Amy Pascal, Rachel O'Connor, and Aditya Sood are all in the credits.
Who Else is Onboard?
The cast isn’t just a one-man Gosling show, either. There’s Sandra Hüller, James Ortiz, Lionel Boyce, Milana Vayntrub, and Ken Leung rounding things out.
So, bottom line: 'Project Hail Mary' isn’t leaving theaters anytime soon. If you like your space epics with more heart and less space opera nonsense, or you just want to see what all the fuss is about, you’ve officially got extra weeks to grab some popcorn and catch it with a crowd.