'Project Hail Mary' Directors Phil Lord and Christopher Miller Have 'a Chip' on Their Shoulders - but Not About This Film

"Phil Lord and Christopher Miller haven't brought a film they've directed to theaters since 2014's '22 Jump Street,' which only came out about four months after their 'The Lego Movie' - a now somewhat shocking example of how prolific they were at the time, compared with what would wind up being a 12-year wait for their next film."

"their vision of what a Han Solo movie should be conflicted with the studio's vision. They were then offered what was essentially a demotion, they refused, then the two 'Star Wars' obsessives (who even appear as Stormtroopers in 'The Empire Strikes Back Special Edition') were no longer directing the Han Solo movie."

"In their 'Project Hail Mary' (based on Andy Weir's novel of the same name), Ryan Gosling plays Dr. Ryland Grace, a former scientist who is currently teaching elementary school after publishing some controversial opinions about what's really necessary for life to flourish. Those same opinions are now needed when he's recruited by a scientist named Eva Stratt to examine a group of tiny organisms that are slowly killing the Sun."

Phil Lord and Christopher Miller directed 'The Lego Movie' and '22 Jump Street' in 2014 before a 12-year hiatus from filmmaking. Their absence followed the Han Solo project, where creative differences with the studio led to their departure from the director's chair. They have now returned with 'Project Hail Mary,' based on Andy Weir's novel. The film stars Ryan Gosling as Dr. Ryland Grace, a former scientist turned elementary school teacher who is recruited by scientist Eva Stratt to investigate microscopic organisms destroying the Sun and other stars in the galaxy. Grace joins a crew on a one-way mission to an unaffected star.

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