Project Hail Mary Inspires More Confidence In Amazon's Next Risky Blockbuster

Amazon MGM has a major hit on its hands with Project Hail Mary. Ryan Gosling’s sci-fi movie has proven to be 2026’s first true success story. The movie has already made $330 million at the box office, allowing Project Hail Mary to break Amazon’s all-time record in just two weeks. Audiences can’t get enough of the blockbuster, which sits at 96% on Rotten Tomatoes’ Popcornmeter.

The reception is a dream come true for Amazon MGM. Years after Amazon Studios bought MGM, the new-look studio entered 2026 looking to establish itself as a major player in theaters. Crime 101 might not have landed as well as they hoped, but Project Hail Mary has proven that they can successfully make, distribute, and market a major tentpole release.

That’s a great sign for Amazon’s future, including Denis Villeneuve’s eventual James Bond reboot. Bond 26 is guaranteed to be a hit to some degree, but that was not the case for Project Hail Mary. The same is true of their next blockbuster, Masters of the Universe. And while there has been trepidation about the latter’s chances to succeed, Project Hail Mary helps provide more confidence.

Project Hail Mary Was Viewed As A Risk Before Release

It might not seem like it now, but Project Hail Mary was not a guaranteed hit waiting in the wings for Amazon. Sure, the studio hoped that it could follow in The Martian‘s footsteps and turn an Andy Weir sci-fi novel into a major box office and critical success. But there were plenty of ways it could have gone wrong and wound up leaving Amazon with a huge financial flop.

Project Hail Mary‘s budget was frequently drawn into question in the lead-up to its release. Amazon reportedly gave directors Phil Lord and Christopher Miller plenty of money to make sure this film delivered, with reports stating the budget is $200 million after tax credits. Considering Amazon MGM had never made a movie that made over $300 million, that was a risky decision.

Traditional Hollywood math, that a movie needs to make 2.5x its budget at the box office to be a success, gave Project Hail Mary a goal of $500 million globally to break even. And with its box office tracking mirroring F1 and The Running Man, whether it would be a $600M+ or sum-$100M performer lingered.

On top of the high budget, Gosling’s history as a leading man in expensive tentpoles created additional concerns. He may have been a pivotal force in Barbie‘s $1.4 billion success, but that didn’t translate to 2024’s The Fall Guy becoming a major hit. It had a disappointing opening and only made $181 million worldwide by the end of its run.

There were legitimate questions about whether Gosling had enough box office appeal to convince audiences to see Project Hail Mary on the big screen. He couldn’t turn The Fall Guy, Blade Runner 2049, or First Man into hits, so it was fair to wonder if he really had the stardom to support such an ambitious swing.

Now, that’s all been put to bed. Project Hail Mary is well on its way to becoming a triumphant success for Amazon and Gosling. It should easily turn a profit at the box office and become a sign of Amazon’s power as a theatrical distributor. Additionally, it has made the star an even hotter commodity in the industry and could even wind up with multiple nominations at the 2027 Oscars.

The risk paid off big time, and now Amazon is looking to do it again.

Masters Of The Universe Is Another Risk For Amazon MGM

Skeletor stares with red eyes in the new trailer for Masters of the Universe

Next up for the studio is Masters of the Universe. The Mattel multimedia franchise is heading back to the big screen to try to make He-Man a movie star at last, with Bumblebee‘s Travis Knight directing and a cast headlined by Nicholas Galitzine’s Prince Adam and Jared Leto’s Skeletor.

Even though audiences have a history with this property, Masters of the Universe has already proven it’s a risky theatrical bet. Dolph Lundgren’s 1987 film was rejected by audiences, only making $17.3 million at the box office. And unlike other poorly received, decades-old films based on a known IP, this one hasn’t been reclaimed by fans to make it a cult hit.

There are legitimate questions about whether modern audiences are even that familiar with He-Man’s world, let alone whether they desire a new live-action film that reportedly costs $170 million (via Variety). There have been successful releases from this world in recent years, like Kevin Smith’s Masters of the Universe Netflix animated series, which served as a sequel to the original series.

The risk for Masters of the Universe is that it needs to draw in new, younger audiences while also still working for those who have been fans since the 1980s. It must appeal to both demographics to become the success Amazon needs it to be. And as we’ve seen plenty of times before, that is not always easy to do.

It could be even tougher for Masters of the Universe thanks to its prime summer release date. On one hand, its June 5 launch shows confidence from Amazon that it can deliver at least a sizable opening, with the hope that it will then have strong legs throughout the summer.

But it also has a lot of competition. The Mandalorian and Grogu comes out two weeks before. Then, Steven Spielberg’s Disclosure Day, Toy Story 5, and Supergirl release in the three weeks remaining in June. If the response is anything other than stellar or if audiences just don’t care as much for Masters of the Universe, it’s at risk of getting lost in the glut of summer blockbusters.

Masters Of The Universe’s New Trailer Shows Why It Could Be Amazon’s Next Blockbuster Hit

Masters of the Universe is not like Project Hail Mary in many respects, but the latter does inspire more faith in Amazon’s plans. They clearly believe in the 80s reboot just as they did with Gosling’s sci-fi film. And now we’re even starting to see why.

With Project Hail Mary‘s success story well underway, Amazon has started shifting its focus to Masters of the Universe, knowing it has two more months to convince audiences it needs to be seen in theaters. The latest Masters of the Universe trailer is a great step in that direction.

The official trailer does a good job of selling Masters of the Universe as an exciting, action-packed adventure. Galitzine is convincing as He-Man, and Skeletor looks menacing. There’s some comedy and some heart, and I’ve seen plenty of positive reactions to the footage online. It appears Amazon is starting to hook viewers to see their next blockbuster after all.

Just as Project Hail Mary found a surge in popularity the closer it came to coming out, Masters of the Universe could do the same. It should be a focal point of Amazon MGM’s CinemaCon on April 15. If the movie winds up being as good as it looks, then expect Amazon to lift embargoes on it earlier than usual to really help drum up interest so the reboot proves it has the power to be a new mega franchise.