Project Hail Mary Review (2026): The Best Space Movie of Our Generation
I walked into the theater with high expectations for Project Hail Mary. I walked out with something I wasn't fully prepared for. Project Hail Mary is a movie that genuinely moved me, cracked me up, and had my jaw dropping at the screen more than once. I've seen a lot of space movies. This one is different. This one is special. Let me tell you why.
SPOILER-FREE REVIEW — Safe to Read Before You See It
What Is Project Hail Mary?
Project Hail Mary is a 2026 sci-fi film directed by Phil Lord and Christopher Miller, the creative team behind The Lego Movie and the Spider-Man: Into the Spider-Verse films. It's written by Drew Goddard, stars Ryan Gosling, and is based on the bestselling novel by Andy Weir, the same author who wrote The Martian. And yes, if you loved The Martian, you need to see this movie. Like, tonight.
Ryan Gosling as Dr. Ryland Grace in Project Hail Mary
Here's the basic setup without giving anything away:
Dr. Ryland Grace (Gosling) wakes up alone on a spaceship with zero memory of who he is or how he got there. His two crewmates are dead. He's millions of miles from Earth. And as his memory slowly comes back in pieces, he starts to realize something terrifying. Dr. Ryland Grace is humanity's last shot at survival.
The sun is dying. A mysterious microorganism called Astrophage has been feeding off its energy, and every star in our galaxy is being infected. Every star except one. Grace's mission: fly 11 light-years to Tau Ceti, figure out why that star is immune, and somehow get that information back to Earth before it's too late. There's just one catch, the ship doesn't carry enough fuel for the return trip. He volunteered for a one-way mission. Except he can't remember volunteering for anything.
The movie is structured brilliantly. Grace's past shows how he got recruited, what he sacrificed, and why he's the guy who ended up on this ship is revealed through flashbacks as he solves problems aboard the spacecraft in the present. It keeps the pace moving and builds the emotional weight of everything gradually. By the time the full picture comes together, you feel it in your chest.
Ryan Gosling as Dr. Ryland Grace and Sandra Huller as Eva Stratt in Project Hail Mary
Ryan Gosling Is Perfect for This Role
I'll say it plain: Ryan Gosling was born to play Ryland Grace. This character is a middle school science teacher who absolutely did not sign up to be humanity's savior. He's brilliant but unassuming. He's anxious in all the ways a real person would be anxious. And he is genuinely, consistently funny. Not in a one-liner action hero kind of way, but in the way your smartest friend is funny when they're in a completely impossible situation and just start narrating it out loud.
That's what Gosling brings to the screen. He talks to himself. He celebrates small wins like he just won the Super Bowl. He gets excited about science the way a kid gets excited about discovering something cool for the first time. And somehow, watching him navigate the loneliness and terror of deep space, you never feel like you're watching a movie star. You feel like you're watching a real guy.
I did not expect to laugh as much as I did in this movie. Gosling has this incredible ability to cut the tension right at the perfect moment. Not enough to deflate the weight of what's happening, but just enough to let you breathe. It makes the heavy moments hit even harder when they do land.
Ryan Gosling as Dr. Ryland Grace in Project Hail Mary
The Practical Effects Are Shocking — In the Best Way
Here's something I wasn't ready for: how much of this world is actually real. The cockpit, the instrumentation, the physical environment of the spacecraft, a massive amount of this movie was built and shot practically on set at Shepperton Studios in the UK. The instruments look functional. The cockpit looks like something an engineer actually designed, not something an art director slapped together to look cool on a poster. You can feel the texture of the world.
And then there's Rocky.
Rocky is a character Grace meets during the mission. I'm going to stay firmly in spoiler-free territory here, but I will tell you this: Rocky is brought to life through practical puppetry, built by legendary creature designer Neal Scanlan (the same person behind BB-8) and performed live on set by puppeteer James Ortiz. No cheap CGI stand-in. A real, physical presence that Gosling could actually react to. The result is a character that feels genuinely alive. You believe in Rocky the same way you believed in E.T. when you were a kid. That kind of movie magic is rare, and it's rarer still when it's done at blockbuster scale.
Ryan Gosling as Dr. Ryland Grace and Lionel Boyce as Officer Carl in Project Hail Mary
IMAX 70mm Is the Only Way to See This
I caught this film in IMAX 70mm, and I cannot stress this enough. See it big in IMAX if you can.
The visual fidelity on that screen is unlike anything I've experienced in a theater in years. Cinematographer Greig Fraser (who shot Dune and The Batman) and the production team made the fascinating choice to shoot digitally, transfer the footage to physical film stock, and then re-digitize it to bring back the warmth and grain of analog. The result is a movie that looks enormous and gorgeous but also intimate and tactile.
In the IMAX sequences, the aspect ratio opens up wider and the screen just swallows you. The audio design is equally impressive, this film uses sound to hold and build tension in a way that's genuinely masterful. There are moments of silence that are louder than any explosion. There are moments of ambient hum and score that made the hair on my arm stand up.
See it in IMAX. Trust me on this one.
The Verdict
Project Hail Mary is the best space movie of our generation. It balances the complexity of its central scientific problem with genuine human emotion in a way that is incredibly hard to pull off. It made me laugh. It made me tear up. It had me locked in for every single one of its 156 minutes. Ryan Gosling is at his absolute best. The practical effects are jaw-dropping. The story is inventive, warm, and deeply human. And it does all of this while never dumbing itself down or losing sight of why the stakes matter.
If you liked The Martian, you'll love this. If you've been waiting for a blockbuster that actually respects your intelligence while also giving you something to feel — this is your movie.
FAQ
Is Project Hail Mary worth seeing in IMAX? Absolutely. The film was shot with IMAX cameras and the presentation in 70mm IMAX is one of the best theatrical experiences of 2026. The audio design and visual scope are built for the biggest screen you can find.
Do I need to read the book before seeing Project Hail Mary? No. The movie stands completely on its own. I hadn't read the novel and had zero trouble following the story. That said, book readers report that the film is largely faithful to the source material, with some science streamlined for pacing. My wife is still mad that I haven’t read the book, but I’m on it now.
How does Project Hail Mary compare to The Martian? Both films are adapted from Andy Weir novels by the same screenwriter, Drew Goddard. The Martian is a more grounded survival story. Project Hail Mary is bigger in scope and more emotionally ambitious, it's a buddy movie set in deep space about friendship, sacrifice, and saving two worlds at once. If you loved The Martian, Project Hail Mary is essential.
Is Project Hail Mary appropriate for kids? The film is rated PG-13. It's not particularly violent or scary, but the emotional weight of some scenes, particularly toward the end it may hit younger viewers hard. For older kids and teens, it's a fantastic choice, especially for science-minded young audiences.
Is Rocky CGI in Project Hail Mary? One of the most impressive things about the movie. Rocky is a practical puppetry creation built by creature designer Neal Scanlan and performed live on set by James Ortiz. Ryan Gosling was reacting to a real physical character in every scene, which is a huge part of why their relationship feels so believable.