‘Project Hail Mary’ directors address postponing film for ‘Dhurandhar 2’, ‘It’s good for the health of the global movie business and Bollywood’ (EXCLUSIVE)

At the core of the film adaptation of Andy Weir’s “Project Hail Mary” is scientist Ryland Grace, played by Ryan Gosling. About a scientist who wakes up with amnesia on a spaceship, piecing together how he got there, to finding out that he’s there on a world-saving mission, to making a friend in the least expected of places, he does it all. And if he’s the face of the film project, directors Phil Lord and Christopher Miller are its heart and soul.

In an exclusive conversation with Variety India, the director duo holds forth on how they made a pretty faithful adaptation of Weir’s work, acknowledge the film’s Indian connection, coming to Indian theatres a week after “Dhurandhar: The Revenge” and more.

Your film plays out as a pretty faithful adaptation of Andy Weir’s book. Was the plan to stick close to the source? Or did you go in with a blank slate? 

Phil Lord: We try to capture the soul of what the source material is and what we responded to. In the case of Drew (Goddard, the screenwriter) and us, there were two things. We loved reading about groups of people working together to solve really difficult problems. Which is what happens on a film set every single day. So we all connected with that. The other thing is that [here], big, epic planetary stakes are expressed through a single relationship. And if the idea that in order to save two planets, you have to make a friend… is, like, right up the three of our alleys. 

Christopher Miller: You know, it's a 16-hour audiobook, and so you're gonna have to lose the vast majority of what's in the book. And so, the essential parts that come down to it are the spirit and the soul and those relationships: Grace and [Eva] Stratt [Sandra Hüller], Grace and Rocky [the alien] and the big twists of the movie and the beginning and the end are all things that have to be in it. And then there were a lot of discussions: ‘This part really moved me.’ ‘This part is really special.’ ‘Is there room for this?’ And then there are other things that we kept trying to jam into the movie because we liked them, but they just wouldn't fit into the story. There's only so much you can do. And then it has to be its own thing. It can't just be a checklist of things ever in a book, because it has to work for people who haven't read the book and just exist on its own. But if you've captured the spirit, I think people are usually happy with it.

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One sees a recurrent Indian connection throughout the film. Producer Aditya Sood is an Indian. The film features Indian actors and characters…

Miller: That’s right. So, we wanted the movie to be international, because it's a global problem that the world is coming together to solve. And the idea of the spaceship was that every room of the spaceship was built by a different country. And so each room had a different style to it and a different aesthetic and it was sort of a patchwork quilt of all of these countries coming together to quickly build this thing and solve a problem. And so, I love how much of India and Indian culture is in the film and obviously, no, uh, small, no, small part due to Aditya being on set with us every day. And being a great partner on the movie.

Are you aware that the film is going to release a week later than the rest of the world? 

Miller: We’ve got a sequel to a very popular Bollywood film [“Dhurandhar 2”] coming out on that date [PHM was originally supposed to release in India on March 20]. I heard about it. And I am happy. 

Both: (In unison) A rising tide lifts all boats.

Lord: That’s right. [That’s] good for the health of the global movie business and for Bollywood. There are great local productions, for sure.

What would you say is Ryan Gosling's secret sauce that he brings to the role?
Lord: (Chuckles) I think he brings a lot of personality to these parts. He didn't want to play this part as a stoic. He wanted to play it as someone who looked up to the other people in the movie. He looks up to Rocky. That's, like, his secret trick, that he confers high status onto this cute little alien. Right. And it totally transforms the relationship. He's nervous around him, and wants to impress him a little bit, and when Rocky comes over to his house, he's embarrassed that he left his clothes on the floor. 

Miller: Yeah, that's his secret, is that he's super handsome, super talented, super good at everything. He's got amazing acting range. He's a great physical performer, but he never projects egotism. He is always looking for a connection with his scene partner, and is a humble person. And I think that's why he's so charismatic. You can watch him endlessly, because he has the range, he can make you laugh, he can make you cry, he can put you on the edge of your seat. In the same scene,

Lord: It reminds me of… Warren Beatty, Robert Redford and Ryan O'Neal. These are, like, matinee idols and movie stars who treat their scene partners as equals or superiors, even when they're like your eight-year-old daughter. You know, like in “Paper Moon.” It always feels like they are all great-looking guys that act bashful and clumsy on screen. 

The beetle probes that leave the spaceship at the end of the film are named after The Beatles. Whose contribution was that?

Lord: That’s in the novel.

Miller: …that the beetles were named after the Beatles (both laugh). And that song? 

Lord: Yeah, and that's why we wanted to have a song. It felt so perfect to have ‘Two Of Us’ [by The Beatles], be the kind of big concluding thought of the picture.

"Project Hail Mary" releases in Indian theatres on March 26, 2026.