'Project Hail Mary' Author Says Avoiding 'Crappy Identity Politics' Is Reason For Film's Huge Success
Andy Weir explains why ditching identity politics led to huge financial success.
The last several years for Hollywood have generally been a disaster. Production has dried up in Los Angeles, as studios chase lower costs in other countries or locations.
High profile blockbusters have flopped, like Disney's "Snow White," or disappointed relative to expectations, like "Avatar: Fire and Ash." "The Marvels" in 2023 was one of the biggest money-losing films in entertainment industry history. This year, "The Bride!," made because director Maggie Gyllenhaal was upset about the election of President Donald Trump and wanted to prioritize feminist stories, was yet another massive financial disaster. Not every big budget film that's failed has incorporated politics or identity-driven storytelling, but plenty of them have.
One film that avoided politics entirely? "Project Hail Mary" starring Ryan Gosling. A film based on a book from author Andy Weir, who also wrote "The Martian," "Project Hail Mary" has become a runaway box office success.
Through just 10 days of box office, the space-set film has grossed a whopping $170 million at the domestic box office, and $153 million at the international box office. Even more impressive, and indicative of the quality of the film and most importantly, word of mouth, it dropped just 32.8% in its second weekend in theaters. By contrast, "The Bride!" dropped over 70% in its second weekend.
There are plenty of reasons and explanations for this, but one of the most obvious: "Project Hail Mary" was entertainment, not politics. And the book's author did that on purpose.
Ryan Gosling attends the "Project Hail Mary" New York Premiere at Josie Robertson Plaza at Lincoln Center. (Photo by Jason Mendez/Getty Images for Amazon MGM Studios)
Writer Andy Weir Says ‘Project Hail Mary’ Purposefully Avoided Politics
Author Andy Weir joined popular YouTube film and culture critic The Critical Drinker, aka Will Jordan, to talk about the film and his goal with the story. Jordan said that from the outside, the film was so good and well-received in part because it avoided the "crappy identity politics" taking over Hollywood.
"For me, it's a great example of what you can do now with movies," Jordan said. "If you're faithful to the source material, and you don't insult the intelligence of your audience, and give them something really interesting to grapple with, and you know, dare I say it, [don’t] try and shove, like, crappy identity politics into it, you end up with a g***** good movie at the end of it that the people just want to watch."
Weir immediately agreed, saying that's a purposeful decision he's made.
"I think you and me are kind of on the same wavelength there when it comes to fiction writing," he explained. "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, even non-political. There's just no symbolism at all. My books are just purely to entertain."
He continued, showing he's familiar with Jordan's work, saying, "You don't have to worry about ‘the message.'"
How refreshing is that to hear?
Believe it or not, a vast, overwhelming majority of potential moviegoers do not want to spend $15-20 on a movie ticket, plus popcorn, drinks or snacks, and get an eye-rolling lecture filled with "identity politics" and divisive ideology. What the industry has forgotten is that their job is to entertain. It's a leisure activity, not a requirement. It's a product, a consumer-based product, that they need to sell to potential "buyers."
This is how you do it, not by injecting identity and "the message" where it doesn't belong, but by focusing on story, character, and execution. That's the lesson Hollywood needs to learn from "Project Hail Mary." We'll see if they do.