Project Hail Mary Is Proof Americans Want Normal Movies, And Hollywood Is Already Trying To Ruin It

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The Amazon original film “Project Hail Mary” just pulled off something extraordinary. With an $80.5 million domestic opening weekend and a 95% critics’ score and a 96% audience score on Rotten Tomatoes, it’s an undeniable blockbuster hit. By the second weekend, the film had crossed $300 million worldwide and became the second-biggest non-franchise opening over the past decade, second only to “Oppenheimer.”

The movie is a genuine phenomenon. It’s an echo back to simpler times when films like this were common rather than remarkable. “Project Hail Mary” reminded us what we’ve been missing, what younger generations didn’t even realize was possible. And now, Hollywood’s response is just as predictable as it is infuriating: Hey, let’s make it a franchise!

Per the Hollywood Reporter, there’s nothing officially in the works, but the idea has been mentioned in the wake of the film’s massive financial success. The outlet’s sources reported that Amazon MGM Studios said “a sequel isn’t out of the question,” with insiders highlighting the merchandising potential of Rocky, the film’s beloved alien character. 

The studio promised that the author of the novel on which the whole thing is based, Andy Weir, would be “in the driver’s seat,” meaning he’d probably have to write another book first. That’s better than handing it over to a team of ultra-left Hollywood writers, at least. But the very fact that the conversation is already happening, within days of the film’s release, reveals again how Hollywood doesn’t understand anything. 

Instead of taking time to figure out why “Project Hail Mary” worked, executives seek to stretch out the storyline until everyone hates it. It’s a tired method that turned movie fans away for years, and it represents a complete failure to grasp what audiences want. 

“Project Hail Mary” didn’t win over audiences because it was the first installment of an endless cinematic universe. It succeeded because it was an authentic, family-friendly story with a positive message and quality performances.

And while Variety catches heat for promoting a lot of woke ideals, one of its writers managed to pinpoint four reasons the story worked that Hollywood likely won’t pick up on: It assumed audiences were intelligent, it took its time to tell the story well, it embraced “sincerity and optimism,” and it was visually stunning without using green screens or AI slop.

The movie is both simple and complex. Middle school science teacher Ryland Grace wakes up alone in space, figures out what’s happening, and befriends an alien; the duo then manages to save both their worlds. There’s no cliffhanger setting up a never-ending march of prequels, sequels, and spin-offs. The film respects its audience enough to be enough on its own.

Weir shared his thoughts on what made the story work. In a conversation with critic Will Jordan (the Critical Drinker) shortly after the film’s release, the author noted, “I never put any politics or messaging in any of my stories at all.”

“There’s no deeper meaning; there isn’t even any symbolism,” Weir added. “My books are just purely to entertain … you don’t have to worry about the message.”

“Project Hail Mary” could have easily launched itself into politics and social commentary, adding in dialogue about climate change and a host of other divisive issues. Instead, directors Phil Lord and Chris Miller respected the source material and delivered a film people actually wanted to see. When it came down to it, this was a feel-good movie about a hero’s journey with an unlikely friendship to warm your heart. It was simple and pure. So naturally, Hollywood wants to ruin it.

There’s nothing to indicate that a sequel would perform well, and everything to show it would ruin the magic. “Project Hail Mary” is only the third non-sequel or non-franchise movie to open above $50 million internationally in the post-COVID era, alongside “Oppenheimer” and “F1: The Movie.” Both of those films are also standalone projects, but apparently, we’re not talking about that. 

The moment “Project Hail Mary” becomes a franchise is the moment it loses its luster. Then, it’s just another soulless cash grab. 

Weir also mentioned that he has ideas for sequels but hasn’t come up with a good enough one yet. That’s at least better than working overtime to crank out anything vaguely palatable to capitalize on the original film quickly. It doesn’t seem like the problem is Weir, but rather Amazon MGM, which assumes it can push forward with any old crap and hope fans are willing to overlook mediocrity. 

Hollywood was given a golden opportunity to learn a lesson and to respond by serving up more non-political, non-preachy, family-friendly, and interesting stories in settings built with human hands. It was shown that a movie with heart can still draw a crowd and that audiences will show up for an amazing story. Too bad all it can see are ways to ruin the first good thing it’s done in ages.