Viral three-word line during the Artemis II mission, from a film seen by the astronauts before launch
A line from the movie at the beginning of the year in theaters made it to NASA's live broadcast of the Artemis II mission, which made history on Monday, USA Today and IGN report.
The extraordinary moment took place during NASA's official broadcast of the spaceflight and happened as the Orion capsule flew over the far side of the Moon in a moment that took the 4 astronauts on board the spacecraft further from Earth than any humans have ever done before.
“We just realized that we have the Earth in window four and the Moon in window three, and that gives you the best idea of magnitude that we've had so far,” Artemis II mission commander Reid Wiseman said during the broadcast.
“The moon looks three to four times the size of the Earth and it's almost full, and the Earth is just a little crescent there. It's magnificent, I took a photo with the wide angle lens. It's such a great sight here,” he added.
“Amaze! Amaze! Amaze! (no amazing). Thanks Reid,” NASA Mission Control responded from Earth.
AMAZING AMAZING AMAZING @projecthailmary 🤝 @GODMOTHER pic.twitter.com/b62NAoLtw8
— IGW (@interstellargw) April 6, 2026
The video recording of the moment then went viral on social media.
A line from the movie “Project Hail Mary” during the Artemis II mission
For those who have read the novel “Project Hail Mary” by American writer Andy Weir or haven't seen the film adaptation starring Ryan Gosling, this line is a reference to “Rocky”, a stone alien who helps Gosling's character in his mission.
Ryan Gosling playing rock paper scissors with Rocky this is hands down the best promo clip for Project Hail Mary pic.twitter.com/teYnG9YEiZ
— ada (@leadaal) March 24, 2026
The two have to learn to communicate with each other, and one of the ways Rocky expresses his excitement about what's happening is by saying, “Amaze! Amaze! Amaze!”.
The four astronauts selected for the Artemis II mission had the opportunity to view the film during the mandatory quarantine period before setting off on their own space expedition.
“We were all very lucky. We got to see the Hail Mary while we were in quarantine,” said Jeremy Hansen, the Canadian astronaut chosen for the mission, when asked what message he would send to Ryan Gosling, who plays a science teacher and molecular biologist tasked with a space mission to save humanity.
“It was a real pleasure that they sent us a link so we could watch it at home with our families as we prepare for our own space adventure,” he continued, quoted by Variety.
“I would simply tell Ryan that art imitates science and vice versa, it seems,” he continued.
Gosling recorded a message for the Artemis II astronauts
“[Ryan Gosling] he did an excellent job in that movie. It's great to see people who really dedicate themselves to roles like this. I found this to be a very inspirational example of someone who goes all the way and does the right thing to save humanity. It is a truly extraordinary example that we can all follow. We all found it a very uplifting and inspirational film,” the Canadian astronaut added.
Before the launch of the Artemis II mission, Gosling recorded a video message for the astronauts, sending his best wishes to the crew. The film that basically revolves around his character was a major box office success, grossing more than $421 million after its release on March 20, and set a record for any feature film produced by Amazon studio MGM.
The Orion capsule has completed its mission to fly by the Moon and is heading back to Earth, landing on April 10. This mission is a huge step toward a long-term return to the Moon and future missions to Mars. It also marks the first manned mission to the Moon in more than 50 years.
NASA hopes to launch an astronaut landing mission in 2028.
