Project Hail Mary (2026) – Transcript

Project Hail Mary (2026)
Director: Phil Lord, Christopher Miller
Screenplay: Drew Goddard
Based on: Project Hail Mary by Andy Weir
Cast: Ryan Gosling (Ryland Grace), Sandra Hüller (Eva Stratt), James Ortiz (Rocky), James Ortiz (Television Presenter), Lionel Boyce (Carl), Ken Leung (Yao Li-Jie), Milana Vayntrub (Olesya Ilyukhina), Priya Kansara (Mary – voice), Malachi Kirby (Martin Dubois), Liz Kingsman (Annie Shapiro), Mia Soteriou (Dr. Browne), Orion Lee (Dr. Li)
Release dates: March 9, 2026 (Empire Leicester Square); March 20, 2026 (United States)

Plot: Ryland Grace awakens from an induced coma on an interstellar spacecraft. Initially erratic with retrograde amnesia, Grace realizes he is the sole survivor of the three-person crew and is in a distant solar system light-years from Earth.

Grace slowly remembers he is an American middle-school science teacher and former molecular biologist. In the past, scientists observed an infrared line, named the “Petrova Line”, forming from the Sun to Venus. They discover that a microorganism named as “astrophage”[a] is proliferating on the Sun’s surface, causing it to dim, and predict it will cause a catastrophic global cooling within thirty years. Government agent Eva Stratt recruits Grace along with international scientists to study astrophage.

Grace discovers that astrophage are single-celled organisms impenetrable to electromagnetic radiation. The astrophage breed on Venus, feeding on the planet’s carbon-dioxide atmosphere and energy from the Sun. The Petrova line is created by astrophage propulsive emissions as they migrate between the Sun and Venus. Their emissions can be utilized to construct an incredibly efficient but dangerous spacecraft engine. Stratt discloses Project Hail Mary to Grace: as the astrophage have infected other stars within Earth’s solar neighborhood, an international effort was formed to send a crew to Tau Ceti, the only undimmed nearby star, to investigate. It is a suicide mission; the Hail Mary spacecraft can only carry enough astrophage fuel for a one-way trip but the crew’s research will be sent back to Earth via probes.

In the present, as Grace approaches Tau Ceti, he sees an alien spacecraft. The spacecraft, which docks with Hail Mary, is made of solid xenon that Grace dubs “xenonite”. The ship’s pilot is a rock-like, five-legged alien from a planet in the 40 Eridani A system. Grace names the alien “Rocky”, partly after Rocky Balboa and partly after the rocky appearance of the alien’s exoskeleton. Grace deduces that Eridians have no eyes but “see” via echolocation. He creates a machine translation system to interpret Rocky’s musical chords-like speech. Rocky is a mechanic and also the sole survivor of a mission by Eridians to stop the astrophage. Neither can survive in the other’s atmosphere, so Rocky enters Hail Mary using a small, pressurized ball of transparent xenonite as a spacesuit.

Following Tau Ceti’s Petrova line, Grace and Rocky discover that the planet Tau Ceti e—that they name “Adrian” after Rocky Balboa’s wife—harbors an organism that preys on astrophage, controlling their population. After learning that Grace cannot return home, Rocky offers enough astrophage to refuel Hail Mary. While gathering the organism from the upper atmosphere of Adrian, a fuel leak causes an uncontrollable spin that renders Grace unconscious. Rocky breaks his spacesuit and saves Grace but is severely injured. While Rocky recovers in hibernation, Grace learns how to breed the astrophage-consuming organism, which he names “Taumoeba” (a portmanteau of ‘Tau Ceti’ and amoeba). Rocky revives, and he and Grace part as friends to their home planets.

In the past, Grace meets Hail Mary’s commander, engineer, and scientist, and their backups. While doing an experiment with astrophage, an accident kills the scientist and the backups three days before launch. With no time to train a replacement, Stratt asks Grace to take the place of the deceased scientists. When Grace refuses, Stratt has him drugged and forcibly put on the Hail Mary.

During the trip to Earth, Grace discovers that the Taumoeba have evolved to pass through their xenonite containers and are eating Hail Mary’s astrophage fuel. Grace repairs the problem on his ship but realizes that Rocky’s ship is made entirely of xenonite, allowing the Taumoeba to consume all of his fuel. Left with the choice of returning to Earth or saving Rocky and the Eridians, Grace chooses the latter, sending the Taumoeba and his research to Earth via the probes.

Sometime in the future, an older Stratt and her team acquire the probes, allowing humanity to stop the astrophage from darkening the sun. Meanwhile, the Eridians create a biodome on their planet for Grace to live in. Rocky tells him that Eridian scientists have finished preparing Hail Mary to return to Earth. While contemplating the news, Grace begins another day of teaching science to Eridian children.

* * *

Transcript

Note for Students & Writers: This transcript is archived here for educational purposes, critical analysis, and screenwriting study. All rights belong to the original creators.

[faint beeping]

[deep breathing]

[ethereal music playing]

[Mary] Eye movement detected.

[zipper creaking]

[whirring]

[choking]

[coughing, gagging]

[groans]

[Mary] What is two plus two?

[coughing]

[Mary] Incorrect.

Cognition assessment [coughs]

[Mary] What is two plus two?

[teeth clacking]

Incorrect. [grunts]

You have been in an induced coma.

[breathes deeply]

[hair trimmer whirring]

You may experience some memory loss [spits] difficulty speaking.

[yelps]

[thudding] [groans]

[Mary] Body movement detected.

For your own safety, please return to the medical platform.

[groaning]

Where am I?

[Mary] Please remember muscle function has not yet been restored.

[whirring] [objects clattering]

[man] People!

Hello?

[music fades]

[breathing deeply]

[grunts]

[thudding] [grunting]

[intriguing music playing]

[grunts]

[panting]

Where am I?

[breath trembling]

[music fades]

Red leather, yellow leather.

[blabbers]

Why is there an atomic resolution scanning electron microscope?

Why do I know that?

Am I smart?

[soft intriguing music playing]

[birds chirping]

Hello?

[Mary] Please record video diary.

[man] No.

Can I speak to the person in charge?

[blabbers]

The, uh, captain.

[Mary] Captain Yáo, Li-Jie. Deceased.

Yeah, where, um, are the living people?

[grunts]

[Mary] Dr. Ryland Grace.

End of manifest.

I can’t be the only person here. Right?

[Mary] Pilot detected.

[systems powering up]

No! No. No-No. Not the pilot.

Uh

Call, uh, Houston.

[Mary] Unknown command.

Operation Go Home in effect.

[Mary] Invalid operation.

[trackball clicking]

That’s the sun! There it is.

So, what are we, like, Neptune-ish?

Let’s crank up the radio and call Earth.

[Mary] Current transmission time to Earth is 11 years, 10 months, 14 days and 6 hours.

No. Nope. You’re wrong.

I need a map.

Oh.

Uh

That’s so far.

That’s really far. Uh

[trackball continues spinning]

[sighs]

[softly] That’s not our sun.

[in normal voice] That’s not our sun.

[intriguing electronic music playing]

[thudding]

Where is the fuel?

Wait.

[music fades]

[uneasy music playing]

[inaudible]

[riveting music playing]

[reporter] We are just minutes away from the fly-by

through the Petrova line near Venus.

So, what can you tell us about the ArcLight probe?

What do we expect to find?

[Dr. Browne] The image we see will be coming from the onboard microscope.

Um Oh, my God.

Sorry. I have to go now.

[humming]

[in sing-song voice] Sound waves are physical.

And at different frequencies, they make different [high-pitched] pattern–

No, pattern–

They make different [low-pitched] patt–

Olivia, can you help me out? There we go!

[beat droning]

Whoa!

Yeah.

Are they really eating the sun?

The space dots?

That is a great question, uh, Rekha.

And I’d be curious what your parents think about that.

I’m not sure it should come from me.

Hey! Who wants to play a game of the bean bag is lava!

[students] Lava! Lava! Lava!

What is the speed of light, Olivia?

Uh

It’s melting your hands, Olivia!

186,000 miles per second!

Oh! Give her a round of applause.

That is awesome.

What is the Petrova line?

[chuckles sheepishly] Pass!

You can’t pass!

I just did.

[students] Lava! Lava! Lava!

Come on, guys.

Two years ago a radio telescope enthusiast named Irina Petrova, she noticed that there was a streak of infrared light from the sun to Venus.

And that is now known as the Petrova line.

That’s it.

That’s the dots?

They think so.

What dots?

[Grace] These dots.

They sent a probe up to the Petrova line, and this is what they found.

Are they eating the sun?

They seem to be dimming the sun a tiny, teeny-weeny, little bit.

So, no big whoop.

It’s a small whoop.

It’s a small-to-medium whoop.

Over the next 30 years, the Earth could cool maybe 10 to 15 degrees.

So it is a big whoop.

I heard that all the crops will die, the economy will free-fall, and half the Earth will die of starvation.

[overlapping chatter] Well

We’re all gonna die!

Yeah, it’s true.

[Grace] You’re forgetting something.

Guys, guys! That’s if that were to happen. Right?

They’re gonna figure this out.

Right now, the best minds in the entire world are on it.

[music ends abruptly]

[hair trimmer whirring]

[country song playing] [whirring]

[Mary] Good morning, Dr. Grace.

[Grace] I’m up!

[crunching]

[inaudible]

[country song continues playing]

[door rattles] [woman] Knock, knock.

[song ends]

Who’s there?

Not good at jokes.

[Grace] Not good at jokes who? [chuckles]

Dr. Grace?

Maybe.

Eva Stratt. I’m with the Petrova Task Force.

I need your help.

Me.

Did you write this?

Oh.

I’m interested in this section here.

Uh Page 31.

“The Goldilocks Zone Is For Idiots:

Why Everyone Is Wrong About Life.”

That was a long time ago.

Do you stand by what you wrote?

I was fired for standing by what I wrote.

You were fired for calling the leading scholar in your field “a staggering waste of carbon” at the UNESCO conference in Denmark.

You heard about that, huh?

Look, I don’t know what this is, but, uh, I think I’m not s–

That’s lava.

It’s not. Okay.

No one in your field wants anything to do with you because you refused to back down from a very unpopular view, and I can give you a chance to prove them all wrong.

Uh Kevin, no running.

[Kevin] I’m not.

Well, joke’s on them because I don’t even care. So

[Stratt] I think you do care.

You’re running away because you’re scared.

[Grace] No, I’m not.

[Stratt] Do you still believe water is unnecessary for life to evolve?

[Grace] Uh

Look, there is nothing magical about hydrogen and oxygen.

Water is required for life on Earth, sure.

But a completely different planet might have completely different conditions.

I don’t know why that makes me such a nut.

I need you to come with us.

Sorry, I didn’t catch your name.

Carl.

Carl. Hi. [Stratt] Dr. Grace, Petrova line samples splashed down last night.

I want you to tell me what they are, how they work.

I am a teacher at Grover Cleveland Middle.

And you have a doctorate in molecular biology.

And I ride a bike to work, and it’s not for exercise.

So I’m sure there are thousands of other people who are better–

It survives on the surface of the sun.

Does that sound like a water-based lifeform to you?

The sun’s really dying, isn’t it?

Yeah.

[machinery whirring]

Is all of this necessary?

[switch clicks]

[Stratt] Yes.

Please analyze the Petrova sample.

[Grace] Um

[Stratt] Just one thing.

The entire room is filled with argon.

Just try not to rip your suit.

[Grace] Uh

Am I expendable? Is that why you want me?

That’s not the only reason.

It’s almost like you don’t care if I die.

[chuckles nervously]

Hold on. You have to talk about it?

The consensus here is that it would be preferable if you did not die.

[sarcastically] Thanks, guys.

[soft intriguing music playing]

Oh. [container whirring]

[whirring]

Welcome to Earth.

[exhales sharply]

[switch clicks] [Stratt] Are they alive?

[Grace] They’re moving.

[Stratt] So they’re alive.

[sputters] Yes, they’re moving, but that could be for many reasons.

What are they made of?

It’s gonna take a long ti– It took like 200 years to figure out how bacteria works, so

Please do it faster.

[Grace] I’m just going through the whole light spectrum here.

Wow!

You’re not gonna believe this.

Nothing happened.

I can’t see into these buggers.

Amazing.

X-rays, microwaves, gamma rays, visible light.

Nothing!

Ooh, ooh, ooh, I’ve been dying to do this all day!

[music stops]

[music resumes]

It’s a cell!

It’s a cell. Wake up! It’s a cell!

[Grace] It’s a tiny alien cell. You guys! [chuckles]

Applause.

[Grace] Guys! This is first contact!

With life outside of the–!

[music stops] Uh-oh.

Oh, it died.

[switch clicks] [Stratt] What?

This is great news.

Now we can find out what they’re made of.

[music resumes]

You guys fired up?

Yes!

Right?

Carbon.

Oxygen.

Hydrogen.

[music stops] Oh.

[somber music playing]

It’s made

[music fades]

almost entirely of water.

All right. [Grace exhales]

Sorry if I overreacted in there.

Just, uh, realizing I was wrong about the only original idea I ever had.

Yeah. What else did you learn?

They give off infrared light when they move.

[Stratt] Mm-hm.

Like, so much.

I don’t know how they store all that energy.

But, uh, their wavelength is exactly the Petrova frequency.

The light is how they move.

Yeah, they consume the sun’s energy, and then they expel it for propulsion.

They toot to scoot basically.

Why did it go to Venus?

I don’t know.

Okay. We’ll tell you.

What?

I have 347 other biologists in 21 countries mobilizing as we speak.

So thank you for your help. I’m glad you didn’t die.

Let’s pack this up.

[doors whirring]

[man] Pack up!

[indistinct radio chatter] [helicopter hovering]

[Grace] That’s it?

That’s it, Carl? Talk to her.

You’re taking all the stuff?

At the school you said there were thousands of people more qualified than you, so

I was being modest.

[Stratt] I don’t need modest.

I need people who think they’re right when everyone else thinks they’re wrong.

I need people who piss other people off.

That’s me!

Do you want to be on a project?

If you

If you think I can help, then

Just answer the question.

I wanna help the world.

I left you three dots.

Just three, huh?

Plus the one you killed.

I would take the three.

[Stratt] Yes? I’ll take the dots.

Get to work, Dr. Grace.

The world is counting on you.

[ethereal chorus vocalizing]

[inhales sharply]

[music fades]

[Grace] Hey, Carl?

[Carl] This is Carl.

[Grace] Imagine for a second that you’re an interstellar microorganism.

[Carl] I’m not doing that.

[Grace] Why would you leave the sun and go to Venus?

Why not stop at Mercury? It’s closer.

Maybe fresh air?

[Grace] Venus’s atmosphere is mostly CO2.

Maybe that’s fresh air to them.

You don’t know what these little space dots like.

[Grace] Hey, Carl?

Do we have an expense account?

We don’t.

[purses lips]

[sighs deeply]

But I do.

[afro-pop dance song playing]

[indistinct announcement over PA]

[Carl] All right, I got something for you.

[scanner beeping]

[scanner beeping]

Thank you.

Do you have a coupon? We don’t need a coupon.

We’re the government. Which government?

All of ’em.

So this box is Venus.

The box is Venus.

It’s set to emit the same infrared light frequency as Venus’s CO2 atmosphere.

So if the dots move when you turn the lights on, that means they’re looking for CO2.

Thus proving the Carl Hypothesis.

[Carl] Sick.

[drill whirring]

Sorry.

[Grace] All right. [Carl] All right.

[Grace] You ready?

Uh-oh.

Why you saying “Uh-oh”?

[Grace] The Astrophage moved off the slide.

[Carl] Huh?

We lost them.

[Carl] What do you mean, we lost them? Go get them.

If I open the door in the light, they’re gonna escape, and then we’ll lose them forever.

At least now they’re in the box.

So we’ll just turn the lights off.

But there’ll still be light. It’s gotta be total darkness.

Okay, so just put this box in another box.

Nice.

[whirring]

[Grace] Go ahead and close it. Over.

[Carl] I can hear you.

[drill whirring]

[Grace] Entering phase two.

[drill whirring]

I’m in.

[Carl on radio] Please report. Over.

[Grace] There’s one.

There’s two!

Come on! Get the third one.

[Grace] Got sample three.

The Three Musketeers. The Three Stooges.

Uh-oh.

[Carl] What? What?

[Grace] Are you sitting down?

No, I’m standing like a grown man.

[Grace] ‘Cause there’s a fourth.

What?

[Grace] We’re fathers, Carl.

[Carl] Now I’m sitting down.

[line ringing]

[Stratt] Stratt.

Carl and I made a baby.

[Stratt] What?

We figured out how Astrophage breeds.

[thudding]

[Stratt] Don’t move.

Wheels up.

[tires screeching]

[Grace] You know, Carl, when Stratt said she was sending a jet, I thought you meant like a PJ or something.

[Carl] I know.

[officer] Take this.

Been a long time since I’ve taken a pill from a stranger without knowing what it was.

[engine roaring]

Stop! Stop!

[grunting]

[jet thuds]

[Stratt] Dr. Grace, how was your flight?

[indistinct chatter]

[Grace] Where are we?

[Stratt] The ocean.

The Astrophage reproduction. Can you do it at scale?

Oh, in theory, you just get a bunch of elbow-shaped pipe, put sunlight in one end–

Excuse me for a second.

[Grace retching]

Write it down.

[Aide] Yes, ma’am.

[Grace clears throat]

and IR light and CO2 in the other. Repeat.

Anything else you need for–

[Grace] Just some water.

He gave me a pill and it’s still in my throat.

[officer] Two venti coffees.

Thank you so much. Water for him.

Or coffee. That’s

I need both.

Or not.

Okay, so this is kind of a tough room, so don’t take it personally.

I don’t need anything fancy.

As long as there’s a bed and a shower I’m good.

[chatter fades]

[softly] I can’t do this. [Stratt] Come on. Yes.

[Grace] I can’t. I can’t. [Stratt] You’re doing great.

Everyone, this is Dr. Ryland Grace from the United States.

Please go here. Thank you.

And he figured out how to breed Astrophage.

How did you do it?

[Dr. Lokken] How long does the process take?

Does it reproduce by mitosis or meiosis?

[scientist over monitor] What is the incubation period?

[overlapping chatter]

[Grace] Um [clears throat]

Carl and I made a mini Venus out of a plywood box, and as soon as the samples recognized the, uh, spectral signature of CO2, they were

They were like, “Whoomp! There it is!”

Okay.

You can sit down.

[Narender] Who’s Carl?

While your experiment was crude and clumsy, our scientists have replicated his results.

[indistinct chatter]

I’m sorry, how did you see–?

We estimate an eight-day doubling time under optimal conditions.

Dr. Grace is right. Oh.

It is the CO2.

[softly] That’s why they’re going to Venus.

Please say it for everyone.

That’s why they’re going to Venus.

So that’s why they’re going to Venus, is what Dr. Grace wants to say.

[in normal voice] They’re going to breed.

Whoomp! There it is.

[Grace chuckles]

I really like him.

How long to make two million kilogram?

Two million?

Two million is–

Why on earth would you need that much Astrophage?

Nobody told him?

He has no clearance.

Please stand up, Dr. Grace.

Stand up.

I hereby grant you top-secret clearance to all information pertaining to Project Hail Mary.

[softly] What’s Project Hail Mary?

[Stratt] All right.

The sun is not the only star dying.

There is a clear pattern of infection.

Every star was infected by its neighbor except one.

Tau Ceti?

That’s right. 11.9 light years away.

It is uninfected despite being well within the cluster of infected stars.

Why?

Why? Tell him.

[all in unison] We don’t know!

Which is why we decided to build a ship to go there and find out.

It’s 11.9 light years away.

You can’t just build an interstellar ship.

Oh yeah, we can.

The ship is not really the problem.

The energy required to power the ship is the problem.

It was the problem.

The Astrophage is the fuel.

Provided we can make enough of it.

And for that, we need you, my friend.

Me?

Ooh. Those little guys store a lot of energy.

One mistake and that much Astrophage could vaporize California.

That’s true, which is why you now live on a boat in the middle of the ocean in case

[imitates explosion]

I live on a boat? You do.

So you wanna build a near-light speed spaceship, have it travel further than any human-made object has ever traveled, and visit a star just to “see what’s up”?

Yeah.

And then what?

[Stratt] There won’t be enough fuel for a round-trip so they send their findings back to Earth on probes.

And the astronauts die in space?

Yes.

[Grace] Space.

Any other plans you’ve thought of?

Anything else you’re kicking around?

There are infinite possibilities for this to go wrong.

It almost certainly won’t work.

It’s what you Americans would call a long shot.

Hail Mary.

I get it now.

The alternative is to just do nothing and to starve and to kill each other and watch everything on this planet go extinct, including us.

So

[pensive music playing]

[Grace] That’s a long time to be in space.

[Stratt] They’ll be in comas for most of it.

But is that even safe?

Nothing about this is safe.

We only need three.

A pilot.

An engineer.

And a scientist.

[exhales sharply]

Commander Yáo.

I must have known you, but I just don’t remember.

You make a funny face in literally every picture.

You must have been very smart and strong and brave.

[clears throat]

Ilyukhina.

First, I owe you three bags of vodka.

You seemed to have had a lot of friends.

This picture of you, what looks like sneaking into the Kremlin is legendary.

I wish you were still here.

I wish I wasn’t alone.

I wish I was doing a better job, I just, uh

You were both very loved.

[sniffles]

You deserve much more than this.

[voice breaking] I’ll do my best to make sure that you don’t

[sniffles]

you know, that you didn’t–

[sniffles]

[clears throat]

I’ll do my best.

[pensive music rises]

[birds chirping]

[music fades]

[alarm blaring]

[Mary] Approaching Tau Ceti orbit.

Prepare for engine cutoff.

[tense music playing]

Fourteen, thirteen

[Grace] What?

Why engine cutoff?

Seems like something we should talk about.

[Mary] Pilot detected.

[systems powering up] What? No. I’m not a pilot!

[Mary] Four, three

What happens at zero? I mean–

[music fades]

You are now orbiting Tau Ceti.

[intriguing music playing] [shrieking]

What the fudging fudger?

[Grace grunting]

[Mary] Petrovascope operational.

Petrovascope operational.

It’s Tau Ceti.

You have a Petrova line.

But you’re not dimming.

Why?

What is that?

[Mary] Blip-A detected.

What’s a Blip-A?

[Mary] Blip-A detected.

[intriguing music continues]

[music fades]

No, no. No, no, no. Let’s go. Let’s go, Mary.

No-No-No-No!

Pilot detected!

[Mary] Please engage restraint.

Pilot detected!

[Mary] Pilot detected. We’re getting outta here.

[Mary] Engage spin drive.

Engage the spin drive. [Mary] Incorrect.

Welcome to the Hail Mary.

Is it this thing?

[amusing music playing]

[Mary] Erratic maneuver detected.

Yeah.

[music stops] [exhales sharply]

[music resumes]

[Mary] Blip-A detected.

[Grace groans]

What do they want?

[music stops]

[thrumming]

What?

[amusing music playing]

[grunts]

[Mary] Blip-B detected.

What’s a Bl–?

[Mary] Current distance from Hail Mary is 800 meters.

It’s sending me something.

It could be a message.

It could be a bomb.

Is it a bomb?

Shields up!

There are no shields on board the Hail Mary.

Why not?

Thirty meters. [music intensifies]

Twenty meters. Ten.

[music fades]

[exhales deeply]

Well, I guess there’s egg on both our faces, huh, Mary?

[Mary] Blip-C detected.

What’s that?

[amusing music playing]

Why is it moving so much slower than the last one?

They think I’m dumb.

If we were gonna catch it, what would we do?

[Mary] Would you like to go on a space walk, Dr. Grace?

[exhales, clicks tongue]

[Mary] To begin your space walk,

put on your EVA suit and proceed to the airlock.

[Grace] Yeah.

Yes!

[grunts]

[groans]

[beeping]

[music fades]

[breathing deeply]

[dramatic music playing]

No.

That’s just crazy.

[gasps]

[tense music playing]

[grunts]

[Grace panting]

[music stops] [Grace grunts]

[Grace thuds]

[amusing music playing]

Righty tighty, lefty loosey.

[spectrometer beeping]

Xenon’s a gas. I think this thing’s broken.

[Dr. Lokken] We need equipment to analyze the Astrophage at Tau Ceti. Correct?

[Stratt] Dr. Grace. [Grace] Sorry. Hi.

[Dr. Lokken] Most of this equipment won’t work in zero gravity.

[Stratt] And we have a team to develop and build zero gravity versions of this equipment.

[Dr. Lokken] We would need years for that, and we have months.

[Stratt] What’s the alternative?

We make gravity.

Centrifuge?

Centrifuge.

They used them to make butter during the Civil War, actually.

It’s a fun fact.

[systems powering up]

[Mary] Lab operational.

[Grace thuds]

[spectrometer beeping]

[Grace] Still Xenon!

Up is down! Left is right! Xenon’s a solid!

Aliens are real!

I’m wrong about everything and everything’s wrong.

[exhales deeply]

Lefty tighty, righty loosey.

I mean– [sniffs]

Oh no! [alarm blaring]

[Mary] Foreign presence detected.

[exhales deeply]

[object clinking]

[Grace exclaims]

[amusing music playing]

You’re a long way from home.

I’m a long way from home too.

[Mary] Blip-D detected.

[music fades]

[Grace breathing deeply]

[exhales deeply]

[grunts]

[intriguing music playing]

[grunts softly]

[thuds]

[loud thud] [Grace screams]

[Grace groans]

[Grace panting]

[thudding softly]

[gasps softly]

[soft chittering]

Is that me?

My ship.

I don’t understand.

[soft chittering]

Oh.

You want me to go back in my ship?

[soft chittering]

But I just got here.

[soft chittering]

Okay.

Okay.

I’ll talk to you later.

Bye.

[stirring music playing]

[amusing music playing]

[softly] What are they doing, Mary?

[Mary] It is not advised to modify the centrifugal settings of the ship.

Thank you, Mary.

[muffled thud]

[crackling]

[exhales sharply]

[loud hissing]

[groans]

What?

Oh my.

This is new.

[thudding echoes]

Anybody home?

I like what you’ve done with the gravity.

I made you a ship.

It’s ramen.

I only made one.

I’m not sure how many of you there are.

[breathes deeply]

[soft chittering]

[Grace] Hi.

[screaming] [screeching]

[high-pitched chittering]

No-No-No-No-No! I’m sorry, I’m sorry.

You scared me when you went:

[imitates screaming]

[high-pitched chittering]

[intriguing music playing]

[laughs]

[rapid chittering]

Wow.

[soft chittering]

[Grace] Can’t seem to see a face.

Mysterious.

Faces are overrated.

[musical notes playing]

[soft thudding]

[musical notes playing] [chuckles]

You like tapping, huh?

[vocalizing musical notes]

[musical notes playing]

[musical notes playing rapidly]

[Grace] This is fun.

[chittering]

[chittering]

You’re pointing.

You’re not tapping. Sorry.

Another present.

[container hisses]

[soft chittering]

I don’t have one of these.

I love it! Thank you.

[chittering]

What, I put this on my head?

[chittering]

[chittering] Take off my head?

[chittering]

Take my helmet off?

[chittering]

No.

It’ll [imitates explosion]

[chittering]

That’s a big ask. [light flickering]

Oh.

This has taken a turn.

Thank you for what I hope is not handcuffs.

And I’m sorry about the whole helmet thing.

Unfortunately, I need oxygen to breathe, so [chuckles]

Two rings of eight.

O2.

You little rascal.

This is oxygen!

[chittering]

I still don’t think I can do it, though. Sorry.

It’s just, uh if I’m wrong, I’m really wrong.

[Grace sighs]

[gasps softly]

[chittering]

[inhales deeply]

[helmet hisses]

[breathing deeply]

[exhales, chuckles]

[chittering]

Okay.

[exhales]

It’s the Petrova line.

We’re here for the same reason.

You have a Petrova line problem too.

You need to solve it. I need to solve it.

That’s why you made me this.

[chittering]

I’m gonna take that as a yes.

If we’re gonna save our planets, we have to learn how to communicate.

You know, they say math is the universal language.

I thought maybe we find out if that’s true?

You see the numbers?

Oh, you want this?

Whoa! Christmas Eve, that is

It’s really hot in there. Is that ammonia?

Anyway, that’s

Look, see the numbers?

No. They’re on the other side.

Do it again. If you do it again and you–

Don’t let it snap back.

Don’t do it. Don’t do it.

Hold it like that. And you look–

[chittering]

Wow. Wow.

How ’bout something else?

Look at this.

A clock.

We both have time. Right?

These are the hands, and these are the numbers.

One, two, three. They point to the numbers.

And if you’ll notice, there’s numbers there, and there’s also numbers here.

Okay. [chittering]

It is dark.

[chittering]

[voice echoing] I got an idea.

Wait.

Don’t Yeah.

Don’t go anywhere. Stay.

Oh. Oh yeah.

I’m Grace.

[chittering]

I’m gonna call you Rocky.

You know, ’cause you look like a giant rock. Oh!

Um, I’m fine.

[amusing music playing]

[chittering]

Echolocation. Right?

You need surfaces to see.

Try this.

[voice echoing] You see the numbers?

[chittering]

What is that?

Is that good?

[voice echoing] Jazz hands means “good”?

We do this.

Your version of this is our thumbs up.

Nope. That’s thumbs down.

[chittering]

We do the thumbs up.

[Rocky chittering]

It’s close enough.

[chittering]

You want me to wait? I wait?

Yeah. No

I’m really excited to be working with you on this.

Fired up.

I’m sorry I’m talking so much.

It’s just, I haven’t been around anyone in a long time.

Oh.

What have we got here?

[clinks]

[chittering]

It’s a clock.

I showed you a clock and you’re showing me a clock.

We’re, uh, clock bros.

[chittering]

Right.

Um, I gotta be honest.

[chittering]

[Grace] I’m not sure I’m getting all of this.

Check this out.

[chittering]

I thought I might record you.

[chittering] Oh, no-no. No. That’s okay.

It’s just a microphone. Works like this.

Let’s start with one.

One. [chitters]

No-No, wait, wait, wait. Sorry.

[Rocky chitters]

[Grace] Okay. One.

And

[chitters]

One!

[Rocky chittering]

Okay.

So, uh

I met an alien.

And we’re learning to communicate.

Let’s do names.

Okay, let’s start with you.

Rocky.

[chittering]

You done?

My name–

Can’t wait to hear this.

is Grace.

What’s your word for my name? Go ahead.

[Rocky chitters]

You know, enough to order at restaurants.

We have about 250 words.

My atmosphere would kill him and his, me.

But I like to keep a wall up in my relationships anyways.

He’s a mechanic, I think.

He uses a metal form of xenon.

He can make anything.

Look at this.

I’m calling it “xenonite.”

And if I can’t understand what he’s saying, which is most of the time, he puts on a little puppet show for me and my tiny brain.

And you know what? I don’t mind it.

He’s kinda growing on me.

At least he’s not growing in me, you know?

Which was a concern for a little while.

His sun is dying too.

So maybe we can help each other.

Recognize this?

[chitters]

We call it “Astrophage.”

It means star-eater.

[chittering]

[chittering]

[Grace] “Astrophage on me star.

Bad, bad, bad, bad, bad, bad, bad.” Yeah.

Same.

[pensive music playing]

[chittering softly]

Why are you alone?

[chittering]

Twenty-three?

Wow. Um

What happened to them?

[Rocky chittering]

I’m sorry.

[Rocky chitters softly]

How did they die?

[Rocky chittering]

[chittering]

[Grace] Oh.

Um

There were three of us, and two died on the way here.

[chitters softly]

[Grace] I wish I knew why.

Now it’s only me.

[Rocky chittering]

[chittering]

Correction.

[chittering]

[stirring music playing]

Deal.

Called a fist bump, by the way.

[Rocky chittering]

What’s that?

“Fist my bump”?

No. It’s fist bump.

[Rocky chittering]

It’s not the same.

[Rocky chittering]

[Grace] Exactly. The Astrophage has to reach Tau Ceti.

Otherwise, we wouldn’t see the Petrova line.

[Rocky chittering]

[scoffs]

[squealing]

[Grace] Do we really need this whole model?

Right.

Oh boy.

I used to have one of these in my classroom, and it was a lot simpler to set up.

[clattering]

[chittering]

One sec. What? What?

That is a great question.

You know what? Try this.

[in deep, raspy male voice] Why is a schoolteacher

in space, question?

No.

Don’t like that voice.

Can’t unhear it, really. -Scary.

Let’s try this.

[in sultry female voice] Ooh. Nope.

Why is a schoolteacher in space?

No need to even continue. Nope.

[in British female voice] Why is a schoolteacher in space?

[Grace laughs]

[in British female voice] What’s so funny, question?

[persnickety male voice] Why is a schoolteacher in space?

I mean

[persnickety male voice] It has charm, but no.

Meryl Streep?

[in Meryl Streep’s voice] Why is a schoolteacher in space?

[Grace chuckles]

She can do anything.

[in French male voice] Why is a schoolteacher in space?

[Rocky chitters]

Don’t think so.

[in friendly voice] Why is a schoolteacher in space?

That’s not bad. [Rocky chitters]

[Rocky] I like. [Grace] All right.

And in answer to your question, I have no idea what I’m doing in space.

I don’t remember.

[Rocky] Is okay.

Grace find out when Grace go home.

I’m gonna go to sleep.

[Rocky] No understand word.

Sleep?

Uh, just, you go like this.

[Rocky] Died? Is died? Died? No-No-No-No-No.

No. Not died. Just lay here for 29,000 seconds and then

[inhales deeply]

we wake up!

[Rocky] Oh. Understand.

We call this: Okay. Here we go.

Sleep.

Good night, sir.

[Grace] I watch Grace sleep.

[Grace] No, that’s fine. That’s a little weird.

I’ll be good. Good night!

[Rocky] No, not safe. Eridians must watch sleep.

That’s really interesting. That sounds like something

We can unpack that tomorrow.

[Rocky] Rocky watch crew many days.

Crew not wake up.

[exhales]

That’s where you’re gonna be?

[Rocky] No, it’s usually closer.

On your chest.

I wonder if it would work from a little farther back.

[Rocky] But Grace won’t feel comfortable and safe.

Well Hey, look, I’m seeing so many sides of you lately, and it’s great.

Right now I’m seeing the underside of you.

[thuds]

Kind of a side sleeper anyway. Good night.

So, we watch each other sleep.

Eridians don’t sleep like a human does.

They seem legitimately paralyzed.

If danger comes, he can’t wake up.

It’s a survival norm.

Someone has to keep you safe.

[indistinct chatter]

[woman over PA] Attention: Mission update.

Scientific objective completed.

[Stratt] Flight team, I want you to meet Dr. Ryland Grace.

He is currently the world’s leading authority in Astrophage biology.

Dr. Grace, these are the three astronauts going on the mission and their backups for redundancy.

Yáo, Ilyukhina, and DuBois.

Our pilot, engineer, and science officer.

[Grace] It’s an honor.

I’m excited to share what I’ve learned about Astrophage and spin drives.

We have 1,009 of these Little Engines That Could on the Hail Mary and–

[speaking Mandarin]

[speaking Mandarin]

[in English] Okay.

[Stratt] You’re doing great. [Grace] What?

Once the mission is complete, we have the option to end our lives on our terms.

The alternative is slow miserable death by starvation.

[Ilyukhina] I want to do lethal injection with a little bit of heroin.

I will have what she’s having. [chuckles]

[Narender] Following on from Dr. Grace’s discovery, we’ve built an IR emitter set to the wavelength of CO2, which attracts the Astrophage to this revolver face.

The drive then rotates outwards, yeah?

We increase the IR, the Astrophage get excited, thrust the ship forward, and so on and so on.

This is less than a gram of Astrophage, and we only need a fraction of this for this demonstration, if you want to take a look.

To do what?

To melt a metric ton of metal.

[alarm blaring]

[muffled explosion]

Powerful stuff.

Commander Yáo, I really appreciate what you all are doing.

[Yáo] You would do the same.

I would choose just not to go at all.

[Yáo laughs]

I don’t have the bravery gene that you all have. Trust me.

[Yáo] It’s not a gene.

You just need to find someone to be brave for.

[Mary] Movement detected.

[metal thudding]

[Rocky] Hi, Grace.

You’re in a ball!

[Rocky] So Rocky no die in Grace atmosphere.

I come up. Oh, you’re coming up.

[Mary] Foreign body detected.

[Rocky] Grace and Rocky big science how to kill Astrophage together.

I keep going this way?

This room boring. [Grace] Rocky!

[Rocky] Science. Save Earth. Save Erid. Good plan.

[Grace] No! No! No!

[Rocky] What this down here, question?

Amaze, amaze, amaze.

Rocky want to see human technology.

Dirty, dirty, dirty. Dirty, dirty.

Why room so messy, question?

Well, I wasn’t expecting company, was I?

[Rocky] Is this room for garbage? Oh.

Dirty, dirty, dirty. [Grace] No. This is the lab.

This is where the science happens.

[Rocky] What this? What this? That’s the evaporator. Whoa!

[Rocky] What this?

That is the disco ball. That makes me happy.

[Rocky] Rocky will build workshop here.

Will need much room for Rocky and much less space for Grace.

[Grace] What is happening here?

[Rocky] We go Petrova line. We collect Astrophage.

We study it. We go home. We collect. We save Earth.

And when you say “we,” uh, where?

[Rocky] I see Grace!

Apology, apology, apology. [Grace] Whoa! Enough!

Rocky, stay! [Rocky] Rocky new to ball.

[Grace] Rocky, my hand is up.

We can’t just show up in a space ball unannounced and move into someone else’s spaceship. Right?

There has to be boundaries. Boundaries.

We have one mission. Mission.

But we’re two distinct individuals.

Individuals.

Both working on our distinct individual parts of that mission.

[Rocky] Mission. Separately.

Separately. Okay.

Where my bedroom? Bedroom?

For what?

So I have a new roommate now.

Be careful back there, okay?

The chore wheel’s pretty lopsided.

Where on earth does that go?

Not on Earth. More high. [Grace] It goes this way?

[Rocky] Wall. Wall. All the way out to here?

Yes. Out, pointy. What?

He tells me what to do, he tells me why to do it, he tells me how to do it, he tells me when to do it.

And then when I do it, he’s like, “What are you doing?”

I’m just saying you’re gonna get out of the ball to get into a much bigger ball?

[Rocky] Yes. For sleeping.

[Mary] Sounds like you’re having an argument.

You don’t even use a bed!

[Mary] Conflict is normal amongst crewmembers.

You have the Hellraiser thing that you sleep on.

What do you need a bed for? [Rocky] Grumpy, angry, stupid.

How long since last sleep, question?

Don’t talk to– Armando. Yes. Can I help you?

You’re doing this.

It’s a lot of this.

[whispering] And then he’s like, “No understand, no understand.”

And then it’s like

[in normal voice] “Need a word.”

[whispering] You know what the word is? Bossy.

I’m like one of the villains in the Superman movie.

I’m just, like, trapped in hell.

Get me out of here!

His eating habits are

[smacks lips, sighs]

exotic.

[Rocky] Grace look disgust when eat.

How do you look when you eat?

Is look beautiful. Show me.

[Rocky grunting] Oh my God.

[chittering]

Oh my God.

[whispering] He has incredible hearing.

He can see through walls.

Personal space is at a premium.

[Rocky] Who is Grace talking to, question?

There’s no way you can hear me right now.

[Rocky] Can hear. Who are you talking to?

You can hear this?

[Rocky] Yes. Grace say, “You can hear this?”

[faintly] What about this? Yes.

[whispering] Oh my God. Look at this.

Look how far away he is.

[softly] That is where he is. Hello, Grace.

He’s right here. Okay? Hello, Grace Friend.

Did Grace find sampler instruction?

[Grace] Yes, I found the sampler instruct–

Yes, I found the sampler instructions.

[Rocky chitters] [Grace sighs]

[Grace] He’s really smart about some things.

Oh my God, he’s got a gun!

[Rocky] Oh. This? No, no, no.

This to screen in front, and now this to that over here.

Now Rocky can hear screen.

Please don’t point it at me. Oh. Point over here.

Yes. Oh, okay. Now over there.

You’re pointing at me again.

But his species doesn’t know about things like relativity and radiation.

And the rest of the crew?

[Rocky] In mid of ship. There. In here?

And where did you keep the Astrophage?

[chitters] Fuel tanks next to Rocky workshop there.

I think the radiation is what made your crew sick, Rock.

The Astrophage probably just protected you from it.

This isn’t something that you could have fixed.

But I guess together we’re, you know, pretty smart.

Since we’re only gonna be able to intersect with the Petrova line for a few seconds, we’re not gonna have enough time to get a good sample.

[Rocky] Too fast. Do puppet show. Too fast.

I don’t want to do the puppet show.

[Rocky] No, do puppet show.

This is us. We’re, you know, flying along.

The problem is, because the solar system is constantly moving, the Petrova line is gonna constantly be moving. Right?

Am I still doing it?

You still want it?

[Rocky] Yes, yes. Show time.

So we’re not gonna have time to get the sample.

[Rocky] No, no, no.

Use planet gravity to move with line.

You mean sort of like rest in its orbit?

[Rocky] Yes.

[smacks lips]

I didn’t think of that. [Rocky] I did.

[Grace] We figured out a plan.

We’re gonna orbit the planet where Astrophage breeds,

collect a sample and figure out why it’s not eating Tau Ceti.

[Rocky] Who is Grace talking to?

I’m not talking to anyone.

[sighs wearily]

[whispering] I need a break.

[Rocky] Break from what? Oh my God.

[in normal voice] Forget it, this isn’t gonna work.

[rock song playing]

[Grace] 150 million kilometers away.

Racing along at 162 kilometers per second.

Means we should arrive at Tau Ceti-e at–

[Mary] Arrival at Tau Ceti-e in 11 days, 3 hours and 14 minutes.

Thank you, Mary.

You’re welcome, Dr. Grace.

[Rocky] Thank you, Mary.

You’re welcome, Rocky.

Welcome to Earth.

[Mary] You are in the Mental Health Node.

[Grace] Whoa, whoa, whoa!

Careful, Rocky. Rock. Look out below.

The beach is always changing.

You could go to the same spot every day, you’re always looking at a different beach.

[Grace sighs]

Trees.

And you climb, and you climb to the top if you can.

[Grace] He’s so excited about us both getting to go home.

There’s no harm in pretending for a little while.

Touch the wave, Rock.

[Rocky] Touching the wave.

Is wiping out. Hanging ten.

Hey! Oh!

The Big Apple, baby.

In Three, Apollo trains him.

And in Seven, he trains Apollo’s kid.

[Rocky] Yeah! Yeah! Yeah!

Punch, punch, punch, punch. Nice!

[Balboa] Adrian!

[Adrian] Rocky!

[singing] ♪ I say either, you say ♪

[singing] ♪ Say either ♪

Nope.

♪ I say neither, you say ♪

♪ Ne-ither ♪

No.

[Rocky] I like Earth.

I miss the fog.

What about you, Rock?

What do you miss most about home?

[Rocky] Hmm, my mate.

[Grace] Wait, what?

You got a mate? Yes.

I mean, not that you– I mean–

What’s their name?

Name is:

[chittering musically in alien language]

It’s beautiful.

Grace have mate, question?

No.

I mean, I did.

But she thought I had my head in the clouds and I didn’t really want to live in the real world.

She was right.

Anyway, now she’s with Mark.

Rocky hate Mark.

But enough about me. You have a mate.

How long you been together?

186.3 years.

It’s like the honeymoon phase.

No understand.

[Grace] That’s a joke, Rock.

That’s a long time.

You’ve been together a long time.

[chitters softly] Is not enough.

[“Wind of Change” by Scorpions playing]

[Ilyukhina singing] ♪ Like brothers ♪

♪ The future’s in the air ♪

[both singing] ♪ I can feel it everywhere ♪

♪ Blowing With the wind of change ♪

[song continues in background]

[Grace] Permission to come aboard, captain.

[Stratt] You’re already aboard.

Did you get your free hat?

Yeah, I kinda bought them. [Grace] Oh.

You don’t sing, huh?

Yeah, I do.

I actually sang in an Eastern German youth choir.

You’re very mysterious.

No, I’m not.

I always wanted to be mysterious.

Talk too much. That’s my problem.

[smacks lips] Like right now. [clears throat]

I didn’t mean to bother you.

You don’t bother me.

It is such a weird party.

Is it?

Yáo is singing.

Everyone’s so happy.

People are hooking up, and they all know they’re gonna die.

Camaraderie helps them do their job, you know.

Not so much me. So

Must be hard having to ask everybody to you know.

Actually it isn’t.

Yeah.

So, what do you think?

You think you’re gonna pull it off?

What, the whole thing?

Yeah.

God willing.

You believe in God?

It beats the alternative.

[enthralling music playing]

[chuckles softly]

[music swells]

[inaudible chatter, singing]

[music fades softly]

[singing] ♪ Just stop your crying ♪

♪ It’s a sign of the times ♪

♪ Welcome to the final show ♪

♪ I hope you’re wearing your best clothes ♪

♪ You can’t bribe the door on your way to the sky ♪

♪ You look pretty good Down here ♪

♪ But you ain’t really good Oh ♪

♪ We never learn We’ve been here before ♪

♪ Why are we always stuck and running from ♪

♪ The bullets? ♪

♪ The bullets ♪

[music swells]

♪ Just stop your crying It’s a sign of the times ♪

[all cheering]

♪ We gotta get away from here ♪

♪ We gotta get away from here ♪

♪ Just stop your crying It’ll be all right ♪

♪ They told me That the end is near ♪

♪ We gotta get away From here, oh ♪

♪ Just stop your crying Have the time of your life ♪

♪ Breaking through The atmosphere ♪

♪ And it all looks good From here ♪

♪ Remember Everything will be all right ♪

♪ We can meet again somewhere ♪

♪ Somewhere far Away from here ♪

And that is enough.

[all cheering]

[music fades softly]

[enchanting music playing]

[Grace] I wish you could see this, Rock.

[Rocky] Rocky can see.

Boring.

[Grace on radio] What? This is not boring.

[Rocky] Name of planet Tau Ceti-e is same name as star plus “E.”

Boring.

I guess it could be a little more evocative.

[Rocky] Astrophage sampler in position, question?

[Grace] Yep. [sighs]

Trays are live, looking both ways.

[Rocky] It is time go.

[chuckles softly]

[Grace] It’s time go.

[music swells]

[Rocky] What is Grace doing, question?

[softly] I’m having a moment.

[enchanting music continues]

[Grace] You know, back on Earth, if you discover something, you get to name it.

You were technically the first one here, so

Yes, name is Medium-Rough Texture Circle Planet.

[Grace] ‘Kay.

Well, if Medium-Rough Texture Circle Planet was taken, we’ll just have a backup.

Maybe go with something personal.

[Rocky on radio] Personal.

[Grace] What’s your mate’s name again?

Name is

[chittering musically in alien language]

[Grace on radio] It’s okay, it’s okay. I remember.

Need human word for Rocky mate.

Adrian.

Is beautiful.

[music fades softly]

[amusing music playing]

[machine beeping, whirring]

[beeps]

[beeps]

Well, that’s weird.

[Rocky] What?

[Grace] It’s the same amount, both coming and going.

[Rocky] But if Astrophage going to Adrian to breed, there should be more leaving.

It should be double. It doesn’t make sense.

It’s either not reproducing or it’s not leaving the planet for some reason.

[music continues]

Oh, my God.

What? What Grace see? What Grace see, question?

Life.

[chitters in relief]

[music swells]

[Grace] This is not just Astrophage.

It’s bacteria, it’s protozoa.

[Rocky] It’s like cells on Erid.

And Earth.

[Rocky] What this mean, question?

Well, if there’s a whole active biosphere in the Petrova line, it stands to reason there’s a whole active biosphere on Adrian, which means

There’s life on Adrian.

Oh, Grace! Grace! Yeah?

Life. Life is reason. Life is reason!

Yeah. You said it, buddy. Life is the reason.

No understand. No understand.

Use your words. Life’s the reason for what?

Life is reason. Life is the reason for what?

[Rocky] Life is reason. Life is reason.

[chitters] Life is reason what?

[Rocky] Life on Adrian is reason

Astrophage in balance.

Life on Adrian makes Astrophage die.

Like a predator.

[Rocky] Yes.

That would keep the population stable.

Grace, if we bring predator home our stars not die.

Life is reason star not die.

Why didn’t you just say that?

[Grace] If there is some kind of microbial predator on Adrian, it’ll be in the clouds where Astrophage breeds.

Check. Oh. [clangs]

The problem is this ship wasn’t built to go into the atmosphere.

If we get within five kilometers, we’ll be ripped into a million pieces and then we’ll burn up.

Game over.

Game not over.

I make chain. I make long chain.

I put collection device on end.

Oh, yeah, yeah. Five kilometers of chain. Sure.

Guard me! [Rocky] Like this chain. Look.

You can do that? Yes.

Kinda like fishing.

[Rocky] What that?

Whoa, whoa!

[Grace] Fishing! Can you believe it?

It could work. Thumbs up, baby.

Hello, Earth!

Plan is like fishing.

We get very close to Adrian atmosphere and lower collector into clouds with chain.

Then Grace go on hull to reel it in.

If ship not at precise angle and speed, we die!

Example! [thuds]

[exhales]

We must fly backwards to keep proper velocity, even though Grace still have no pilot experience.

But I’ve been practicing, haven’t I?

More! No. Left. Be left. What?

More left. More left. Is perfect. No. Wrong.

[Mary] Erratic maneuver detected.

[Rocky] No. Wrong way. Wrong angle.

Bad, bad, bad. Good, good, good.

Good. Bad. Not enough.

Not enough. Too much! Left, left, left.

I’m barely pulling it!

[Rocky] No, is bad. Grace Rocky dead.

All Rocky plural, all Earth, die.

[Mary] Power off. [Rocky] We die. We die.

Rocky has built predator collector.

Rocky chain spooled and ready.

Grace pilot training not as good.

What think, Earth?

Hello?

They can’t hear you, pal. What?

We’re not actually talking to Earth. Earth’s too far away.

We just record these messages and we tell ’em what we’ve learned, and then when we’re done, we’ll send them all back in a probe.

[Rocky] Why not you tell them yourself when you return home, question?

Yeah.

This is a one-way ticket for me, pal.

[Rocky] What?

[Grace] We had enough Astrophage to get here but not enough to get back.

[Rocky] So, what happens Grace, question?

Oh [scoffs] I got enough food to last me at least a couple years.

Maybe a couple more if I stretch it out.

[Rocky] So Grace die, question?

Yeah, once we’re done, I’m

I’m gonna die.

[Rocky] Why didn’t you tell me?

[Grace] It slipped my mind.

[Rocky] No. Grace say Grace go home.

Look.

Listen. Listen. Listen. No. No.

I got to meet you.

I got to do all this amazing stuff.

I’m good. I’ve made peace with it.

What mean? What mean “make peace”?

It means

I know I’m not going home

I know why and it’s okay.

Thumbs up? No.

Tiny thumbs up? No.

We got stars to save. Okay?

[melancholy music playing]

Grace? Yeah.

You are

[chitters in alien language]

Need word.

W-WWhat word do you need?

To risk self to help another.

Uh, dumb.

[Rocky] Grace?

[music continues]

How much Astrophage you need, question?

[Grace] Two million kilograms.

[Rocky] I can give.

I go home six years slower.

That’s too much.

Rocky watch crew die.

Could not fix.

Grace say Grace will die.

Rocky fix.

[serene music playing]

Grace go home.

[shudders]

Okay.

[music swells]

I thought you made peace, question?

I didn’t mean any of that. [sniffles]

That’s just something you say.

Thank you.

[music crescendoes]

Get over here.

Whoa, whoa, whoa. What? What’s happening?

A hug. Oh! Hmm.

It’s usually not something one does by themselves.

Oh. Wait, I do the same?

Would you just get in here?

How do you know when the hug is done?

You just feel it. Oh.

Are you feeling it now?

Nope.

Oh. Oh, okay. Yeah.

[Grace] We ran the sampler simulation again this morning.

Shapiro and DuBois nailed it again.

Okay. What about the others?

They’ll be ready.

[Stratt] I expect so.

They have a great teacher.

Can you take a compliment please?

[Grace] No.

It’s an order. Okay? [chuckles]

Okay. If it’s an order, I’ll take it. Thank you.

Good.

What do you think?

It’s pretty impressive. [sighs]

Yeah. You’re

You’re good.

[sighs] Three days, huh?

Yeah.

So, what are you gonna do for the next 20 years?

You got a plan?

[chuckles softly]

[distant screams]

[shockwave thuds]

[tense music playing]

[music swells]

[music calms]

[chair whirring softly]

[Mary] Manual mode activated.

[chair whirring]

[exhales]

[chitters]

Go.

[engines sputter, power up]

[rattling]

[hull creaking]

[engines whirring]

[rattling intensifies]

That’s not half bad!

[Rocky] Is full good.

[spluttering]

Time go fishing, question?

It’s now or never.

[whirring]

[suspenseful music playing]

[clattering]

[Rocky] Three thousand meters. Three thousand.

[Rocky] Probe signal good.

[wind blowing]

Now comes the fun part.

[Rocky] Grace go out on hull to retrieve collector?

No fun at all.

It’s a joke.

[Rocky] Oh, humor. Confusing.

[Grace groans]

You gotta be kidding me.

What problem, question?

[Grace] It’s fine. It’s just the sky is slightly on fire.

[spluttering]

[Rocky] Words of encouragement.

[Grace] You can’t just say “words of encouragement.”

[Rocky on radio] Words of great encouragement.

[Grace on radio] Nope.

[music swells]

[grunts]

[creaking]

[grunts]

[Grace] Did you feel that? Yes.

I’m not worried. Are you worried?

[Rocky] Yes.

[Grace] Great.

[creaking continues]

[Rocky] Collector is closed. Move winch into position.

[thudding]

[firing] [Grace] Whoa!

How long is this supposed to take?

[clangs] [Grace groans]

[Rocky on radio] Collector should be here soon.

[Grace] Yeah. It’s here.

[Rocky] Amaze, amaze, amaze!

[Grace groans]

[Rocky] Careful. Collector important.

Yup.

[Mary] Altitude warning.

[Rocky] Oh, hurry, hurry.

[music crescendoes]

[Rocky] Hurry, hurry.

[creaks, clangs]

[thuds]

Grace?

Grace, status update.

Status update.

Grace?

Grace is safe, question?

[Grace] I’m okay.

[Rocky] Good, good, good.

Come inside with predator collector now.

[Grace] Uh

[Rocky on radio] Why not moving, question?

[Mary] Warning! Exterior temperature elevated.

[Rocky] Must move now. Go, go.

[rattling]

[tense music playing]

No, Grace. Bad idea. Come inside.

I’ll be there in a minute.

[Rocky on radio] No, no, no, no, no. Grace will die.

Can repeat mission. Can try again later.

I don’t think there is gonna be a later.

[Rocky] Abort, abort, abort.

Grace will die. No-No-No-No-No-No-No-No-No.

[music swells]

[thuds]

[groaning]

[music swells]

Grace? [Grace] I’m here!

Amaze, amaze, amaze!

[Grace groans] Grace okay, question?

Well, I’m not dead, so yes.

Good, good, good, good.

[Grace] Where is that noise coming from?

[Rocky] Noise is from all around.

It’s loudest at port side of bedroom.

[Grace] The gravity’s tearing the ship apart.

[Rocky] We leave now, question?

We leave now, statement.

[music crescendoes]

[engine powering up]

[Mary] Hull pressure warning.

[Rocky] Hull bending in big room below bedroom.

That’s the fuel tanks.

Oh. Bad, bad, bad. Well, it’s not great.

Bad, bad, bad. [Mary] Warning.

Everybody, calm down. Calm down!

Try and keep yourself together, Mary.

Stop engine now? [Grace] Not yet.

We need to get into orbit or we’ll crash!

I have an idea. First, no crash.

Then, not explode. Deal?

Deal!

Hold on.

[Rocky] Now?

Wait.

[Rocky] Now? Now?

Now!

[powering down]

[music ends]

Did we do it?

[tense music playing]

Why ship moving, question?

There’s a hole in it!

[alarm beeping]

[Mary] Hull breach.

Port side fuel compartments 11 and 12.

[objects clattering]

Grace. What happening, question?

The fuel is migrating to Adrian!

[hull creaking] [groans]

[Rocky] Eject bad fuel bay, question?

[Grace] Yeah.

[rapid beeping]

[Mary] Jettison port fuel tank compartment 12. Confirm.

[Rocky whimpering] [screaming]

[grunts] [Rocky chitters]

Rocky! [Rocky chittering]

[straining]

[Mary] Jettison port fuel tank compartment 11. Confirm.

[Rocky] Eject other fuel bay.

[thudding]

[music ends]

[muffled chittering]

[muffled blaring] [breathing softly]

[melancholy music playing]

[groans softly]

[squealing]

[Rocky chittering]

[chittering in pain]

[continues squealing]

[tapping] [music swells]

[thudding]

[hissing] [thuds, groans]

[squealing in pain]

[alarm blaring]

[flap clicks]

[lever clicks]

[beeps]

[dramatic music playing]

[Rocky chitters]

[Rocky continues chittering]

[music swells]

[Rocky chittering in pain]

[alarm beeping]

[Grace] One nanogram of Astrophage just isn’t enough to blow up a building.

[Dr. Lokken] The quartermaster gave him one milligram by mistake.

That’s a million times the heat energy that they’re prepared for.

A measuring mistake killed my entire science team?

It doesn’t matter. We have to launch.

If we miss the orbital window, it’ll set us back months.

[Grace] Yeah, but if no one’s trained to do the mission, it won’t matter.

[Stratt] Casualty projections go up exponentially if we delay.

We launch on schedule with a replacement science officer.

Okay, but who?

I mean, that [sighs]

I’m not an astronaut.

I don’t need an astronaut.

I need an expert on Astrophage who’s mission-ready.

I’m not ready.

I don’t have any training. [chuckles softly]

You’ll pick it up.

I’m not an astronaut!

I put the “not” in astronaut.

I’ve never done anything–

I’ve never done a space wa– I can’t even moonwalk!

I haven’t done the whole pool thing.

No, no, no. This is just we do for the picture, for social media.

I’m not heroic in any way.

I get sick on an elevator.

Oh, perfect. There’s no elevator on the ship.

I cannot do this.

You’re smart. You’ll figure it out.

This might be very hard for you to understand, but some people are failures.

Some people don’t rise to the challenge.

You’ve been present for every major scientific or strategic meeting we’ve had on the mission.

You’re missing out an important part of the mission which is the suicide part. [chuckles nervously]

Grace, you’d be in very cool company.

If you don’t go, you die anyway.

Yeah, but I die in 30 years with–

“With the rest of us.”

You have no immediate family. You don’t even have a dog.

So, just so I’m clear you’re asking me right now to give up my life.

I am. We all are.

Can I think about this?

You have three hours.

[suspenseful music playing]

[exhales deeply]

[Mary] Eye movement detected.

Good morning, Dr. Grace.

[intriguing music playing]

[music swells]

[chitters softly]

I’ll watch you sleep, pal.

[Grace sighs]

But, uh you gotta wake up.

[somber music playing]

[Grace] I’m not sure what to do.

Done everything I can think of.

[melancholy music playing]

I made him a heat lamp.

And he left me one last message.

[dramatic music playing]

[music swells]

[music crescendoes]

We have our predator.

Right now I’m calling it “Taumoeba.”

And I’m sure that when you wake up, you’ll have a lot to say about why that’s a bad name because it’s just an amoeba from Tau Ceti, and we’re putting “Tau” in front of “amoeba.”

But I would argue there’s an elegance to that.

A simplicity.

Let’s not fight about it now.

We’ll table it and we’ll–

I did a test at different atmospheric variables and, fun fact, every time I introduced nitrogen

[blows raspberry] it died.

And I know what you’re thinking, “Well, that’s terrible because that’s a problem

’cause we need it to survive in the conditions of Venus.”

Obviously, I had to figure out how to breed a new strain of nitrogen-resistant Taumoeba.

And guess what I used?

The breeder tanks that we made with your xenonite.

And you know what?

[kisses]

Now we’re just a couple of very cool dudes with their very own strain of nitrogen-resistant Taumoeba.

Really, all we have to do now is breed enough to survive the trip.

And you gotta wake up because I don’t know how to get your half of the Taumoeba to Erid.

So

No pressure but we did make a deal.

[dramatic music continues]

[thudding]

[Grace] Shh.

Grace?

Rock, could you just give me a little chance please to sleep a little?

[chitters]

[music swells]

[Rocky] Did we find predator?

No? Is yes.

[upbeat triumphant music playing]

Amaze, amaze, amaze.

Rocky breeder tank design.

Good job, Rock.

[Rocky] We can go home, statement.

We can go home.

[Rocky] Fist my bump.

Nope.

It’s still not right.

I’ll do it. [Rocky] Good, good, good.

So what we do now, question?

We party.

[music swells]

Wow.

[Rocky] Is special clothing for celebration.

[Grace] You’re making me think that I have to, uh, up my game.

What is this? [Grace] If you don’t mind.

Rocky get one! [Grace] There you go.

[Rocky] Is good. Yeah.

It’s not much. Just a little something.

Your very own laptop.

My portable Earth thinking-machine!

[Grace] With all human knowledge.

Thank, thank, thank.

And just one more thing.

[Rocky] Yes?

What this?

It’s Earth.

So you can remember me.

[Rocky] Rocky can’t forget.

I didn’t get you anything.

You gave me everything.

[Rocky] But if I were to give you something?

It’d be pretty cool to see your ship.

[Rocky chitters]

[upbeat music playing]

[Rocky chittering]

[music swells]

[Grace] I understand that you think

I’m the right person for this mission.

But

I can’t do it.

[smacks lips]

I can’t do it.

[Grace inhales deeply]

You’ll find a solution. [chuckles]

You are my solution.

My place is in the classroom. [sighs]

Stop pretending this is about your students.

It’s so insulting.

Grace, we will lose a quarter of the world’s population in the next 30 years.

And that assumes that the nations of the world work together to ration food.

Which they won’t.

So I’d double the estimate.

And if you would truly care about the children, or anyone else for that matter, you’d get on that ship.

[clears throat]

I understand the stakes.

I do.

But I don’t have it in me.

[sniffles] My mind is made up.

[groans softly, sniffles]

I’m sorry, but, uh

But you just can’t talk me into it.

[whispering] I’m sorry.

I’m not trying to talk you into anything.

I am trying to make you understand what I’m about to do next.

Yeah? Please.

Stay calm. Come in.

What is this?

Mission plan will state that we induced your coma early to maximize your safety.

You will be remembered as a hero.

Come on. This is crazy.

I have to do it. [sniffles] You’re not

Come on. What are you doing?

This may seem like me betraying you, but it’s actually me believing in you.

Sure feels like you’re betraying me.

Don’t make this harder, please.

[Grace] Come on, guys.

Let’s keep talking about it.

[objects clattering]

[voice breaking] Sit down and we do it differently.

[Grace screams]

[tense music playing]

[Stratt] Yeah, he’s running.

[panting] [music swells]

[both groaning]

No.

No. No.

Carl. I can’t do it.

No!

Don’t do it! Don’t do it! Don’t do it.

You know who you are.

[groans, pants]

[Grace] Carl!

You’re gonna do great.

[Grace wheezing]

[pensive music playing]

I’m trying to think if there’s anything I forgot.

Fuel tank fix okay, question?

Oh, yeah, yeah. They’re working great.

[Rocky] Oh, good. Happy, happy, happy.

[chuckles softly]

[Grace] Well

My friend.

Yes, friend?

I’m not sure what to say, so just gonna

Grace?

No one to watch you sleep.

Yeah.

[Rocky] You are very brave.

Oh, I don’t know about that.

[Rocky] You are bravest human I have ever met.

[chuckles softly]

Hey.

Is joke. I know.

I only meet one human, and is you!

I get it.

It’s a good joke.

[Rocky] Good joke.

All right. Well

[solemn music playing]

Goodbye.

[Rocky] No understand word.

Means, uh, see you later.

[Rocky] But I won’t see you later.

I know.

How do you say goodbye back home?

[Rocky] We don’t.

[Grace] Hmm.

[Rocky] We do this.

[chittering]

[enthralling music swells]

[music ends]

[pensive music playing]

[Mary] Journey to Earth will take 4 years, 2 months and 11 days.

[music fades slowly]

[Latin folk song playing]

[students chanting] Lava! Lava!

Lava!

[breathes deeply]

[alarm blaring]

[Mary] Contaminant detected.

Contaminant detected.

Contaminant detected.

Contaminant detected.

Contaminant detected.

Contaminant detected.

[hissing]

[tense music playing]

[Grace] There’s a leak.

The problem is the xenonite.

The Taumoeba can get through it.

Probably ’cause we bred it in the xenonite breeder tanks, it evolved to escape it.

I was able to stop it before it ate all the Astrophage on the ship.

Rocky’s ship is built of xenonite.

The Taumoeba will already be in his fuel lines.

And he won’t be able to find the leak because the leak is the ship itself.

He’ll be without any fuel. Stranded.

His life support systems will fail.

And if that doesn’t kill him, the radiation sickness will.

He’s looking at a long slow painful death alone.

I can’t do both.

I can go home or I can save Rocky.

I’ve sent you detailed logs of all of our findings.

And enough Taumoeba for you to start your very own Taumoeba farm.

At least I never have to hear you say, “I told you so.”

Even though you were right.

[folk rock song playing]

[song ends]

[intriguing music playing]

[inaudible] Rocky!

[inaudible] Hey!

[thuds reverberate]

[inaudible] Come on, Rock!

[thuds reverberate]

[pleasant music playing]

[music swells]

[Rocky chittering]

[chittering]

I’m here, buddy.

[music crescendoes]

[Grace] Earth, Rocky.

Rocky, Earth.

Hello, Earth. I am Rocky.

I am Rocky from Erid.

I am not Rocky from movie. No, no, no, no.

[Grace] I’m pretty sure they know that.

I’ve left you detailed logs of all of our findings

and I threw in a little something else just for fun.

Hopefully it all makes sense.

And if not

You’re smart.

You’ll figure it out.

This is Dr. Captain Ryland Grace reporting from the Hail Mary.

As the Eridians say

[upbeat rock music playing]

Let’s begin.

[music ends]

[alarm ringing]

[classic rock song playing]

[toothbrush buzzing]

Good morning, Armando.

[whirring]

You shouldn’t have.

[knock on door]

[knocking intensifies]

That’s a noogie.

I’m coming!

[knocking rapidly]

[waves splashing]

Why you always gotta be so early?

Yeah. I know, and I ignored you.

Yeah. Okay.

Why? I thought this was a safe neighborhood.

Okay. It’s just, Armando likes the fresh air.

[upbeat music playing]

[rumbling]

Can we talk about the water temperature a little bit?

It’s amazing.

Just that you’ve done it at all.

Very cold.

And, before, it was boiling.

Is there an in between?

Please tell the biodome illumination team that it’s perfect now.

Oh, no, this is

You know I’m a sucker for the fog.

Yeah, pal.

Can I think about it?

[upbeat music continues]

Good morning, class.

Okay. Everyone take their seats.

Let’s wake up.

Who can tell me the speed of light?

[students chittering]

[music ends]

[gospel song playing]

[song fades]

[ethereal chorus vocalizing]

[music fades slowly]