Andy Weir’s science fiction novel The Martian became an instant bestseller when it was published in 2014, but despite its popularity, it was an odd choice for a big budget film adaptation. Originally self-published by Weir, the novel relies extensively on the internal monologue of astrobotanist and mechanical engineer Mark Watney as he goes into painstaking detail about how he survives after being stranded on the red planet by growing potatoes and pulling parts off of old NASA vehicles. The book is light on dialogue and heavy on explanations of chemical reactions.
Yet director Ridley Scott and writer Drew Goddard delivered a captivating film with The Martian, which premiered 10 years ago today on Oct. 2, 2015. Matt Damon perfectly embodies what makes Watney such a compelling protagonist: the way his can-do attitude and geeky humor banish the existential dread of a situation where his chances of survival are extremely low. Like the book it’s based on, the movie offers some very grounded science fiction, packed with humor and thrills. However, the filmmakers did have to make some concessions to the medium, spending more time focused on the NASA personnel trying to save Watney, and adding more action to the climax. And those changes came at the expense of two of the best segments of Weir’s book.
The Martian is a story about calorie counting. Watney obsesses over how much food he needs to live, while NASA tries to figure out how to get him more. When an accident destroys Watney’s potato farm and a hastily assembled interplanetary care package blows up after launch, Watney’s only hope becomes a rescue mission by the crew who accidentally left him behind.
Both the book and movie make it clear that this plan, which involves the crew of the Ares III slingshotting around the Earth and back to Mars to rescue Watney, is extremely risky. However, Weir draws a more direct parallel between the danger facing all the astronauts.
The ship needs to catch its own supply rocket to have enough food and water to make it to Mars and back. If that fails, the crew has a morbid contingency plan: everyone except for computer specialist Beth Johanssen (played by Kate Mara in the film) would kill themselves. Beth, chosen to be the sole survivor because she’s the youngest and smallest, would eat her crewmates to survive. When the Ares III does get the supplies, the relieved crew jokes about who Beth would have eaten first. It’s some pretty black humor, so I understand why it was cut, but I still like the narrative tightness of forcing all these characters to grapple with the cruel nature of survival in space. It also demonstrates that they will literally die for each other, not just to save Watney.
The film adaptation also cuts the tensest section of The Martian in favor of spending more time on the part of the rescue mission that takes place in space. In the book, Watney loses his ability to communicate with NASA, leaving him to his own devices for the final section of the story. Watney then has to navigate to a vehicle intended for a future Mars mission. That trip is put in jeopardy by a dust storm that will prevent his rover’s solar cells from charging and eventually leave him stranded. NASA knows the storm is coming, but can’t warn him. They’re left waiting in suspense to see if Watney will figure out what’s happening and adjust his plans, or if all of the work they did to rescue him will prove pointless.
Again, it’s not surprising this part was cut from the movie. Ongoing dialogue between Watney and other characters makes the film more dynamic. But part of me still wishes Goddard and Scott had been a bit gutsier and relied on Damon to hold down scenes where he fights against the elements alone, with the supporting cast placed in the same role as the audience: helplessly hoping for the best.
Goddard is returning to Weir’s work with an adaptation of his 2021 novel Project Hail Mary, releasing in 2026 and directed by Phil Lord and Christopher Miller. Like The Martian, the book focuses on an isolated astronaut using his knowledge and ingenuity to survive. Ryan Gosling will be filling the same role as Damon: a movie star charismatic enough to hold down lots of solo scenes while landing Weir’s idiosyncratic humor. I hope that adaptation is as good as The Martian, but either way, it’s well worth reading the book to see what doesn’t survive the transition.
