Fraser Calls Project Hail Mary His Most Complicated Shoot

Cinematographer Greig Fraser said Project Hail Mary was the most complicated film he has ever shot, speaking at Deadline's Contenders London event. Fraser described the difficulty of capturing a faceless puppet in a rolling circle with no gravity, plus stairs and steps.

Production designer Charles Wood said many sets were 8 to 10 feet in diameter so the camera could be on everything. Wood said the film was essentially live action, with a team of puppeteers operating the alien character Rocky.

Fraser compared the film's use of practical effects and limited VFX to E.T. Wood said the team met NASA astronauts during research, including one who described tears not falling due to gravity and blurring his view of Earth.

Fraser said he was hearing for the first time about a potential sequel after Andy Weir spoke about writing another novel connected to the story.

Box office and production

Project Hail Mary, starring Ryan Gosling as science teacher Ryland Grace, has taken $684.5M at the global box office. Sandra Hüller, Lionel Boyce, Ken Leung and Milana Vayntrub co-star in the Amazon MGM film. The film is directed by Phil Lord and Christopher Miller and produced by Amy Pascal, Gosling, Lord, Miller, Andy Weir, Aditya Sood and Rachel O'Connor.

Fraser's previous credits include Dune, The Batman, Rogue One and Zero Dark Thirty. Wood's previous credits include Spider-Man: Brand New Day, the Avengers and Guardians of the Galaxy franchises.