‘Project Hail Mary’ Director’s “No Green Screen” Comments Clarified

It would seem as though director Christopher Miller stoked some confusion when he mentioned that his upcoming sci-fi epic, Project Hail Mary, did not use green screen. Miller is one half of the directing duo behind the upcoming film, which he co-directed with Phil Lord. The two have made a splash in the past with their comedies, 21 Jump Street and The Lego Movie. While Project Hail Mary presents an interesting new challenge, which sees the collaborators adapting Andy Weir’s acclaimed sci-fi novel, they rose to the occasion.

However, in discussing their approach to the Ryan Gosling-starring genre entry, Miller mentioned that green screens weren’t employed to make the impressive shots that tease the adventure throughout the trailers. The specific comment came while speaking with Comicbook.com, where Miller stated:

“And what’s fun about the movie is there is no green screen in the movie whatsoever. Not a single green or blue screen was used. The whole ship was built as a set from the inside. We had a huge section of the exterior of the ship on the outside that we built. Rocky was really with us at all times. That’s what makes it feel real and makes it feel natural.”

Given that the trailers are packed with VFX shots, many fans were confused by Miller’s comments. How could such impressive visuals be achieved without a green screen? Luckily, the director heard fans excited to see Project Hail Mary setting about social media, questioning his comments. Miller took to X, posting to clarify exactly what he meant when he said the film didn’t use green screen. In his post, the director noted that there is a distinction to be made: the film actually has 2,018 shots that use VFX. He also took the time to thank those working with the physical and digital effects departments on Project Hail Mary.

Miller’s post on X reads:

“Some clarification here: “no green screen” doesn’t mean “no VFX”. There were, in fact, thousands of VFX shots in the film (2018!) Green screen is sometimes used in lieu of building sets or figuring out locations/lighting in advance, which can be noticeable if not done carefully, and is something we didn’t want to do. We built the entire interior of the Hail Mary ship – but within the ship, there were still wire and puppeteer removals and ceiling replacements, etc. When Ryan is outside on the hull of the ship, we shot him in front of a black background for space and a shifting hue background when he was up against the aurora of a planet which allowed for truer interactive light on him than a green screen would. The wide space exteriors and spaceship shots were entirely digital and beautifully done by ILM. Rocky was a seamless blend of puppetry and animation from Framestore. And other great work from many more. It really does take a village and we had the best of the best on our side.”

In defense of the Project Hail Mary directors, the same Comicbook.com interview that sparked the confusing comments about green screen also features Lord noting that after they shot on set, it was “the CG artists and animators that took the baton.” The co-director mentioned this aspect before Miller’s comments, and the duo never attempted to shield the truth. Instead, the situation stems from the audience’s confusion between green screen and VFX.

It has become commonplace in recent years for films to claim that no CGI was used in their production. Tom Cruise is notorious for this, with films like Top Gun: Maverick and the last few Mission: Impossible movies. Still, those movies shot their stunts practically while employing heavy VFX to bring things together, touch up shots, and remove equipment. In blockbuster filmmaking, just because it was shot practically doesn’t mean there wasn’t digital wizardry in post-production to complete the shot. Project Hail Mary has plenty of VFX shots ready to thrill audiences, with it already being hailed as one of the year’s best movies. Fans will finally get to decide for themselves when the Gosling-starring sci-fi epic hits theaters on March 20.