“Project Hail Mary” has been released to the film press ahead of its March 20 release, with initial reactions calling the Phil Lord and Christopher Miller sci-fi comedy a “must-see space odyssey” and a potential “major awards contender” by next year’s Oscars.
Film critic Eric Marchen shared a glowing review of “X,” writing that “Project Hail Mary” is “the first blockbuster of 2026.”
“Phil Lord and Christopher Miller’s must-see space odyssey opens as the first blockbuster of 2026,” Marchen wrote. “Graig Fraser’s otherworldly cinematography reaches for the stars, supported by a great performance from Ryan Gosling. This movie is a blast!”
Critic Adriano Caporusso also praised the film in X, writing, “The latest Lord & Miller installment takes the bromance of Short Circuit to hysterical extremes while delivering a pulse-pounding space epic that brings real humanity to the center stage, all with jaw-dropping visuals.”
Globe and Mail film writer Barry Hertz had some concerns about X’s “Project Hail Mary”, but not enough to overcome Ryan Gosling’s “galaxy-sized charm”.
“A not-quite-faster-than-light script with too many endings and one key plot point that evaporates, plus Amazon’s seemingly corporate obligation to the ROCKY catalog can’t contain Ryan Gosling’s galaxy-sized charm,” he wrote. “‘Interstellar’ does not contain any of…”
Entertainment journalist Scott Menzel called Project Hail Mary a “masterpiece” at X and predicted it would be “a film that wins major awards across the board.”
“‘Project Hail Mary’ is an epic cinematic achievement,” Menzel wrote. “Phil Lord and Chris Miller have managed to raise the bar once again and deliver what is not only their most ambitious film yet, but also perhaps their most accomplished.”
Television presenter Jeff Conway echoed the praise, writing that X was “a well-crafted and sophisticated blend of humour, science fiction, drama and suspense. Ryan Gosling is the shining star of this thoughtful story about connection and defying adversity, and Sandra Hüller is the kind soul of this beautiful film.”
The film, based on the 2021 novel by Andy Weir, stars Gosling as Ryland Grace, a brainy schoolteacher who wakes up alone in a spaceship light-years from Earth with no memory of how he got there. As his memory begins to return, he devises an outlandish plan to send him into the galaxy to stop a mysterious being from darkening the sun. Other cast members include Sandra Hüller, Milana Weintrub, Ken Leon, Liz Kingsman, and James Ortiz.
At Comic-Con 2025, Gosling shared the first five minutes of Project Hail Mary with Miller, Lord, and screenwriter Drew Goddard. Gosling said at the time that he related to Ryland’s situation as “an ordinary person in an extraordinary situation.”
“I empathized with his reluctance,” he said. “Aside from the fact that he has a PhD in molecular biology, he’s a normal person in an unusual situation. Like me and many of us, he reacts to a lot of things. He’s suitably terrified of the task at hand. He’s the best person on earth. It’s exciting to experience this journey together, as he somehow finds the courage to put one foot in front of the other and keep moving forward.” ”
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