March 29, 2026
Box office up, comments in meltdown
'Project Hail Mary' Crosses $300M in Sales to Become Amazon/MGM's Highest-Gross
Fans exhale: adaptation survived, but a ‘where’s the science?’ fight erupts
TLDR: Project Hail Mary soared to $300.8M to become Amazon/MGM’s top-grossing film, but the fan fight is about brains vs. feels: book readers want more science, casual viewers praise the heart and humor. Audiobook devotees say the best version is still in your ears—cue the adaptation wars.
Ryan Gosling just rocketed Amazon/MGM to its biggest box office ever, with “Project Hail Mary” blasting past $300.8 million worldwide and overtaking “Creed III.” It’s a global crowd-pleaser from the U.K. to China, based on Andy Weir’s novel and directed by Phil Lord and Christopher Miller on a hefty $200M budget. But the real fireworks are in the comments. One camp is sighing in relief the adaptation didn’t, quote, “F the story up,” while audiobook loyalists insist the audio version is still king. Book purists are stirring the pot, saying there’s not enough science compared to Weir’s “The Martian,” sparking a nerdy slap-fight over calculators vs. feelings. Others are loving the movie’s vibe: no cartoon villains, just smart humans solving problems with humor—a break from superhero smash-ups, as one comment puts it.
Meanwhile, the group-watch crowd reports a rare miracle: nobody was bored, even if some wouldn’t rewatch. Over in the side lanes, Pixar’s “Hoppers” is hopping toward $300M too, “Scream 7” just sliced past $200M on a lean budget, “Reminders of Him” is quietly thriving, and horror misfire “They Will Kill You” face-planted at $9M. Verdict: the box office is orbiting, but the community is the real launch party—half cheering, half grading labs, all loud.
Key Points
- •Project Hail Mary reached $300.8 million worldwide, becoming Amazon/MGM’s highest-grossing film and surpassing Creed III’s $276 million.
- •The film earned $54.1 million this weekend across 86 markets, with strong results in the UK ($6.3M), China ($7.7M), Australia ($3.8M), South Korea ($3.3M), and Germany ($3.4M).
- •Directed by Phil Lord and Christopher Miller, starring Ryan Gosling, and based on Andy Weir’s novel, Project Hail Mary had a $200 million production budget.
- •Disney/Pixar’s Hoppers rose to $297.6 million worldwide after a $37 million weekend ($24.8M international) and is expected to cross $300 million next week; budget was $150 million.
- •Paramount’s Scream 7 hit $204 million worldwide; Universal’s Reminders of Him reached $69.4 million; Warner Bros./New Line’s They Will Kill You debuted at $9 million and was co-financed by David Ellison’s Nocturna.