Juno Temple hiding by a freezer.Image via Briarcliff Entertainment
It wasn’t a great start to the year for sci-fi films until Project Hail Mary came along and shattered expectations. Before Phil Lord and Christopher Miller‘s blockbuster, which has grossed more than $500 million worldwide so far, two sci-fi movies came and went without making much of an impact in theaters. Neither of those two films was able to recoup its budget, and only one of them received positive reviews. The other was Mercy, starring Chris Pratt as a Los Angeles cop accused of murdering his wife, and Rebecca Ferguson as the AI-powered judge assigned to his case. The movie holds a 25% score on the aggregator website Rotten Tomatoes and grossed only around $55 million against a reported budget of $60 million.
Mercy has, however, emerged as quite a big hit on Prime Video, which is probably what was always intended. Project Hail Mary is also an Amazon Studios release, although it was given a massive run on PLF and IMAX screens. It’s returning to premium IMAX 70mm screens shortly, and has grossed more than $80 million worldwide in the immersive format since its release. The movie holds a 94% score on Rotten Tomatoes and is likely a shoo-in for several Oscar nominations when the time comes. It wouldn’t be surprising if it picks up a Best Picture nod as well, seeing as its spiritual precursor, The Martian, was nominated for Best Picture a decade ago.
Collider Exclusive · Sci-Fi Survival Quiz Which Sci-Fi World Would You Survive? The Matrix · Mad Max · Blade Runner · Dune · Star Wars
Five universes. Five completely different ways the future went wrong — or sideways, or up in flames. Only one of them is the world your instincts were built for. Eight questions will figure out which dystopia, galaxy, or desert wasteland you’d actually make it out of alive.
💊The Matrix
🔥Mad Max
🌧️Blade Runner
🏜️Dune
🚀Star Wars
01
You sense something is deeply wrong with the world around you. What do you do? The first instinct is often the truest one.
02
In a world of scarcity, what resource do you guard most fiercely? What we protect reveals what we believe survival actually requires.
03
What kind of threat keeps you up at night? Fear is useful data — if you’re honest about what you’re actually afraid of.
04
How do you deal with authority you don’t trust? Every dystopia has a power structure. Your approach to it determines everything.
05
Which environment could you actually endure long-term? Survival isn’t just tactical — it’s physical, psychological, and very much about where you are.
06
Who do you want in your corner when things fall apart? The company you keep is the clearest signal of who you actually are.
07
Where do you draw the line — if you draw one at all? Every survivor eventually faces a moment that tests what they’re actually made of.
08
What would actually make survival worth it? Staying alive is one thing. Having a reason to is another.
Your Fate Has Been Calculated You’d Survive In…
Your answers point to the world your instincts were built for. This is the universe your temperament, your survival instincts, and your particular brand of stubbornness were made for.
The Resistance, Zion
The Matrix
You took the red pill a long time ago — probably before anyone offered it to you. You’re a systems thinker who can’t help but notice the seams in things.
You’re drawn to understanding how the system works before figuring out how to break it.
You’d find the Resistance, or it would find you — your instinct for spotting constructed realities is the machines’ worst nightmare.
You function best when you have access to information and the freedom to act on it.
The Matrix built an airtight prison. You’d be the one probing the walls for the door.
The Wasteland
Mad Max
The wasteland doesn’t reward the clever or the well-connected — it rewards those who are hard to kill and harder to break. That’s you.
You don’t need comfort, community, or a cause larger than the next horizon.
You need a vehicle, a clear threat, and enough fuel to outrun it — and you’re good at all three.
You are unsentimental enough to survive that world, and decent enough — just barely — to be something more than another raider.
In the wasteland, that distinction is everything.
Los Angeles, 2049
Blade Runner
You’d survive here because you know how to exist in moral grey areas without losing yourself completely.
You read people accurately, keep your circle small, and ask the questions others prefer not to answer.
In a city where humanity is a legal designation rather than a feeling, you hold onto something that keeps you functional.
You’re not a hero. But you’re not lost, either.
In Blade Runner’s world, that distinction is everything.
Arrakis
Dune
Arrakis is the most hostile environment in the known universe — and you are precisely the kind of person it rewards.
Patience, discipline, and political awareness are your core strengths — and on Arrakis, they’re survival tools.
You understand that the long game matters more than any single victory.
Others come to Dune and are consumed by it. You’d learn its logic and earn its respect.
In time, you wouldn’t just survive Arrakis — you’d begin to reshape it.
A Galaxy Far, Far Away
Star Wars
The galaxy far, far away is vast, loud, and in a constant state of violent political upheaval — and you wouldn’t have it any other way.
You find meaning in being part of something larger than yourself — a cause, a crew, a rebellion.
You’d gravitate toward the Rebellion, or the fringes, or whatever pocket of the galaxy still believes the Empire’s grip can be broken.
You fight — not because you have to, but because standing aside isn’t something you’re capable of.
In Star Wars, that willingness is what makes all the difference.
This Sci-Fi Gem Is Finding an Audience at Home
However, the movie we’re talking about cost about one-tenth of Project Hail Mary, whose reported budget stands at more than $200 million. Despite the low costs, it wasn’t able to pass the $10 million mark domestically. The movie in question is Good Luck, Have Fun, Don’t Die, the critically acclaimed time-travel gem that marked Gore Verbinski‘s return to feature filmmaking after a decade. The movie stars Sam Rockwell as a man from the future who recruits people to fight artificial intelligence. The movie holds a “Certified Fresh” 83% score on Rotten Tomatoes, where the critics’ consensus reads, “A gleeful high-concept comedy with a serious message at its core, Good Luck, Have Fun, Don’t Die lets Sam Rockwell rip with thrilling results while marking a very welcome return of director Gore Verbinski in peak form.” According to FlixPatrol, the movie is on a redemption arc on PVOD platforms, having spent a month on the domestic iTunes charts so far. Stay tuned to Collider for more updates.
