Ryan Gosling already has a couple of projects lined up after the success of Barbie, among them a new sci-fi movie with which he can redeem one of his most recent box office letdowns. Ryan Gosling is now regarded as one of the biggest stars in Hollywood thanks to his acting skills, charisma, and sense of humor, and he has shown his talents in movies of various genres. Gosling’s acting career started in The Mickey Mouse Club in 1993, and he made his big screen debut in 1997 in Frankenstein and Me.
Gosling’s big break arrived in 2004 when he starred in the romantic drama The Notebook alongside Rachel McAdams. Since then, Gosling has explored different genres in his career, such as psychological thriller with Fracture, action with Drive, comedy with Crazy, Stupid, Love, and musical with La La Land. Gosling has also visited the sci-fi genre with Denis Villeneuve’s Blade Runner 2049, and now he’s going back to it with a new project that, thanks to their similar themes, can redeem one of his most recent box office failures.
Every Ryan Gosling Movie, Ranked Worst To Best
Ryan Gosling has cemented himself as one of the most consistent and versatile actors of the 21st century who has succeeded in multiple genres.
Ryan Gosling’s Project Hail Mary Will Be Similar To One Of His Best Performances
Hail Mary & First Man share similar themes.
In 2018, Ryan Gosling starred in the biographical drama First Man, directed by Damien Chazelle (La La Land) and based on the 2015 book of the same name by James R. Hansen. First Man tells the story of Neil Armstrong, who goes from being a NASA test pilot struggling in his personal life due to a family tragedy to becoming the first man to set foot on the Moon. First Man was a hit with critics, with most praise going toward Gosling’s performance as Neil Armstrong, Claire Foy’s Janet Armstrong, Chazelle’s direction, and the movie’s moon landing sequence.
Unfortunately, despite great reviews and critical acclaim, First Man was a box office failure, grossing $105.7 million worldwide against a budget of $59 million. Now, Gosling’s next project, though not from the same genre, can redeem this failure thanks to its similar themes. Project Hail Mary is a sci-fi movie based on the 2021 novel of the same name by Andy Weir, the author of The Martian. The novel’s film rights were bought by Metro-Goldwyn Mayer back in 2021, with Gosling joining the project as producer and lead actor.
Project Hail Mary follows Ryland Grace, a teacher-turned-astronaut who wakes up from a coma with amnesia. With time, he remembers he was sent to the Tau Ceti solar system to find a means of reversing a solar dimming event that could cause human extinction. Project Hail Mary will be directed by Phil Lord and Chris Miller, and it’s expected to enter production sometime in 2024. With both First Man and Project Hail Mary being movies focused on an astronaut’s journey, the latter could perform better at the box office and redeem the unfair failure of First Man.
Why First Man Failed At The Box Office
First Man had some fierce competition at the box office.
First Man had all the elements to be a box office hit: it’s based on a true story, there’s drama and suspense, and Gosling’s performance was brilliant, but it had fierce competition. First Man was released alongside Goosebumps 2: Haunted Halloween and Bad Times at the El Royale, but there were other factors that might have contributed to its box office failure. There was controversy around First Man as the filmmakers decided not to show the planting of the U.S. flag on the lunar surface. Because of this, the filmmakers were accused of lack of patriotism, and this might have influenced the audience’s interest in the movie.
Other experts believe that the box office failure of First Man was due to its 141-minute runtime and its focus on drama, which could have drawn potential viewers away thinking it would be a slow-paced, uneventful story. This combination of factors led to First Man’s box office disaster, and not even its good reviews could save it.
Why Project Hail Mary Can Succeed Where First Man Failed
Project Hail Mary guarantees more action than First Man.
Biographical movies can be a hit or miss and that depends on a number of factors: from the story itself to the reputation of the real-life characters, who plays them, who directs, etc. First Man’s marketing might have been misleading and sold the idea of it being more suspenseful or even action-oriented, rather than being a drama focused on Armstrong’s personal journey.
Project Hail Mary is a full-on sci-fi story, which is already a huge advantage over First Man, but it also has drama and suspense. Project Hail Mary also has the advantage of being based on a novel by Weir, as both The Martian novel and movie were a success, which will be a big enough hook to attract the audience.
Project Hail Mary
Based on the novel by Andy Weir (The Martian), Project Hail Mary is an action-adventure sci-fi film that stars Ryan Gosling as an astronaut who must save Earth from an oncoming ice age by heading to a faraway galaxy.
- Director
- Phil Lord , Christopher Miller
- Cast
- Ryan Gosling
