‘Project Hail Mary’ Opens to $80.5 Million, and Ryan Gosling Has the Year’s Biggest Debut So Far

Nobody expected this much of a space movie in which Ryan Gosling’s main scene partner is a pile of rocks. Project Hail Mary opened to about $80.5 million in North America this weekend and $140.9 million worldwide, the biggest debut of 2026 so far, according to IndieWire. Early predictions had put the domestic number closer to $30 million to $40 million.

The context, per Deadline, is the point. It is the best opening ever for Amazon MGM Studios, for directors Phil Lord and Christopher Miller (ahead of The Lego Movie) and for a non-franchise film in March, and the second-best start for a non-franchise film overall, behind only Oppenheimer’s $82.4 million. Unlike Christopher Nolan’s film, this one is PG-13, and it earned an A CinemaScore. Around 5 million people bought tickets, against 5.9 million for Oppenheimer.

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Gosling plays a school teacher on a desperate mission to save the planet, per Variety, in an adaptation of Andy Weir’s novel by Drew Goddard, who adapted Weir’s The Martian. Gosling, who also produced, has been working the campaign with a line he repeats in interviews:

Maybe the future is not something to be feared, rather, just figured out.

Ryan Gosling, IndieWire

The marketing leaned into the star as much as the story. Gosling and Harry Styles both appeared on SNL in the lead-up, and Styles’ hit “Sign of the Times” is performed in the film by Sandra Hüller, per Deadline. IndieWire counts her karaoke scene among the reasons the film broke out. Large-format screens did a lot of the heavy lifting, too: IMAX and premium screens made up 54% of North American sales, and IMAX delivered $27.6 million globally.

Project Hail Mary – Official TrailerAmazon MGM Studios · Watch on YouTube ↗

Amazon’s Kevin Wilson put the weekend in plain terms:

We believe deeply in the Hail Mary, and it’s clear audiences do as well.

Kevin Wilson, head of domestic theatrical distribution, Amazon MGM Studios, Deadline

Internationally, the film opened at No. 1 in more than 60 markets, including the U.K. ($10.2 million), Australia and Germany, for $60.4 million overseas, Deadline’s global update shows. Its net production budget is about $190 million, so the start is solid rather than runaway, but audience scores are strong worldwide, and Deadline calls word of mouth the “rocket jet fuel” for the film.

The competition is already in the rearview: Pixar’s Hoppers took $18 million in its third weekend, a bit under projections, as Gosling’s film took the wind out of its sails. The next big test is family-friendly in a different way, since The Super Mario Galaxy Movie opens April 1.

Added to the High Grailed archive on October 12, 2026.