When Amazon MGM began teasing Project Hail Mary in earnest nearly eight months ago, we learned that Ryland Grace (played by the similarly-named Ryan Gosling) would awake from a coma to find himself in space. Now, with a new trailer ahead of the Super Bowl, we’ve learned a bit more about what will happen to him after that. Ryland comes into contact with some stoneline, crablike creature he names Rocky, who will help him in his mission to save Earth.
A synopsis from the studio reads:
Science teacher Ryland Grace (Ryan Gosling) wakes up on a spaceship light years from home with no recollection of who he is or how he got there. As his memory returns, he begins to uncover his mission: solve the riddle of the mysterious substance causing the sun to die out. He must call on his scientific knowledge and unorthodox ideas to save everything on Earth from extinction… but an unexpected friendship means he may not have to do it alone.
This latest trailer seems to land Project Hail Mary somewhere between Arrival, with its motivation to talk to an extraterrestrial life form, and The Martian. The latter makes sense, given that Project Hail Mary is based on the novel of the same name from The Martian author Andy Weir. Weir is an executive producer on the film, which comes from directors Phil Lord & Christopher Miller and screenwriter Drew Goddard. Aside from Gosling, Sandra Hüller, James Ortiz, Lionel Boyce, Ken Leung, Milana Vayntrub and Priya Kansara also star.
Project Hail Mary opens in theaters and IMAX on March 20.