Why Ryland Grace’s Hero’s Journey Twist In Project Hail Mary Ending Is Significant Explained By Author Andy Weir

The ending of Project Hail Mary reveals that Ryland Grace is not living on Earth, but instead is living with his alien best friend Rocky (James Ortiz) on the planet Erid. The Eridians have managed to build a biodome in order for Ryland to live there safely with a beach and ocean water. However, it’s a slight change from the book’s ending, as Ryland is much older, and it doesn’t include his own private beach. Also, it’s revealed that his ship, The Hail Mary, could be sent back to Earth.

Throughout the movie and book, Ryland Grace suffers from slight amnesia because of a lengthy coma, and what Stratt (played by Sandra Hüller) gave him in specific substances. One of the major revelations is that Gosling’s character actually refused to go on the “suicide mission” to space and was forced into a coma. Weir spoke with Inverse to explain exactly why this moment was fundamental to Ryland’s character and the whole movie itself:

“I wanted to start with a core basis of almost a pathological fear of conflict and build that into him. He’s kind of a lonely guy initially. He doesn’t really have any close acquaintances or friends. And then he ends up with someone that he cares about enough that he’s willing to risk his life. He resisted the call, but the call overcame his resistance. He didn’t choose to go.

I think we can all empathize with the idea of feeling overwhelmed, unqualified, and scared. That’s what I was shooting for. It’s critical that we empathize with the main character and feel for the main character and root for them.”

Project Hail Mary is based on Weir’s novel from 2021 and shows a science teacher turned hero named Ryland Grace facing the toughest of missions, which is to save all humankind from an oncoming ice age. The movie adaptation from Amazon MGM Studio stars Gosling, Hüller, Milana Vayntrub, Ken Leung, and Lionel Boyce.

This same “hero’s journey” is also used in the 1977 epic Star Wars when Luke Skywalker is hesitant to join the fight and even tells Obi-Wan Kenobi that he doesn’t want to get involved, but the choice is taken away when his aunt and uncle are murdered. It’s used in many epic tales of heroism and shows the development of a character in a more well-rounded way.

Ryland Grace’s journey in Project Hail Mary is literally out of this world and has become a true story of bravery, sacrifice, and humanizing. Project Hail Mary is being received extremely well by critics and audiences alike, with an impressive near-perfect 95% rating on Rotten Tomatoes and an A rating from Cinemascore.

Project Hail Mary is available to watch in theaters now.