Critical popcorn

Impressive! To mark one of the most anticipated sci-fi releases of the year, Project Hail Mary, IMAX, Amazon MGM Studios and Sony Pictures Releasing UK have taken cinema ‘out of this world’, making it the first ever film to premiere in the stratosphere!

A bespoke IMAX display was sent into space to showcase footage from the film, its Filmed For IMAX featurette, and the trailer in IMAX’s exclusive Ratio played against the curvature of the planet itself at 110,000 ft altitude, in an unprecedented cinematic stunt – take a look at this beautiful insanity:

Directed by Phil Lord and Christopher Miller and shot specifically for IMAX, Project Hail Mary blends large‑scale science fiction with an intimate survival story, crafted to be seen on the biggest possible screen – releasing in cinemas today. 

Out in IMAX and cinemas across the world now, Project Hail Mary has been filmed specifically for IMAX, delivering a cinematic experience unlike any other…if anything you’ll feel both the isolation of deep space and the urgent race against time to save Earth.

In Project Hail Mary, science teacher Ryland Grace (Ryan Gosling) wakes up on a spaceship light years from home with no recollection of who he is or how he got there. As his memory returns, he begins to uncover his mission: solve the riddle of the mysterious substance causing the sun to die out. He must call on his scientific knowledge and unorthodox ideas to save everything on Earth from extinction… but an unexpected friendship means he may not have to do it alone.

Sony Pictures Releasing UK partnered with IMAX and with stratospheric launch specialists Sent Into Space Ltd. to create a truly groundbreaking premiere moment. A bespoke IMAX display unit, engineered to showcase content in IMAX’s exclusive 1.43:1 Expanded Aspect Ratio (EAR), was launched into the stratosphere.

After an hour-long ascent, the display reached an extraordinary peak altitude of approximately 110,000 feet above Earth, where it executed a full content play-through. The Space Ops team at Sent Into Space enabled extended time at peak altitude, ensuring the complete presentation could unfold against the incredible backdrop of Earth’s curvature and the blackness of space.

The film also stars Sandra Hüller, and James Ortiz, the screenplay is by Drew Goddard (The Cabin in the Woods, The Martian) based on the novel by Andy Weir (The Martian, Artemis). Joining Lord and Miller behind the camera are Academy Award-winning cinematographer Greig Fraser (Dune, The Batman), production designer Charles Wood (Guardians of the Galaxy,), costume designers David Crossman and Glyn Dillon (Rogue One: A Star Wars Story) and film editor Joel Negron (Thor: Ragnarok). Academy Award nominee Daniel Pemberton (Spider-Man: Into the Spider-Verse) is the film’s composer.

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Project Hail Mary was Filmed For IMAX

Directors Lord and Miller worked closely with IMAX throughout the filmmaking process to tailor the film to the unique scope and scale of The IMAX Experience. From early camera tests all the way through post-production, they made specific creative and technical decisions to deliver a movie that is meant to be seen in IMAX. It features nearly two hours of Expanded Aspect Ratio, giving IMAX audiences more picture, scale and immersion than anywhere else.

Project Hail Mary was shot with IMAX-certified digital cameras capturing the film’s deep-space environments, intense survival stakes, and cinematic spectacle with exceptional sharpness, clarity, and scale. Whether it’s the large screens and incredible lifelike visuals or the heart-pounding precision audio and unique auditorium design, everything in an IMAX cinema is custom designed to draw fans into the action.

Select screenings in IMAX 70mm Film deliver the signature look and texture of IMAX Film, and in these locations, as well as select IMAX with Laser cinemas, these key sequences will expand to IMAX’s towering 1.43:1 Expanded Aspect Ratio, delivering the largest image area available in the world. IMAX’s 1,800+ cinemas around the world are calibrated daily, delivering perfectly tuned sound and images to fans at all times.

Book your tickets now: imax.com/project-hail-mary