Why Ryan Gosling made friends with a mop on Project Hail Mary set

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Okay, so everyone’s talking about ‘Project Hail Mary’ – it’s huge right now. Apparently, filming was really draining for Ryan Gosling, and get this – he actually became friends with a mop! Seriously, he needed a buddy to get through it all.

Project Hail Mary had a huge opening weekend, bringing in over $140 million globally. This makes it the biggest movie debut of 2026 so far, and a particularly impressive launch for a film that isn’t part of an existing series.

Our review of Project Hail Mary gave it a perfect five-star rating. We felt it successfully combined the highlights of films like The Martian and Interstellar into an exciting space story, with a standout performance by Ryan Gosling.

We’ve also shared tips on the best times to use the restroom during the film, explained a major Hollywood rule the story ignores, and broken down the emotional ending of Project Hail Mary. Plus, you can find out about Gosling’s unusual new companion below.

Ryan Gosling danced with ‘Moppy Ringwald’ on Project Hail Mary set

Movie sets often have a lot of waiting around, and it can feel isolating, especially when an actor is portraying a solitary character like a scientist in space. Ryan Gosling dealt with this by becoming friends with a mop on set!

Ryan Gosling shared with IMDb that working with Project Hail Mary directors Phil Lord and Chris Miller is a blast because they’re open to trying out any creative path a scene might lead them down.

I was working on set by myself for about 100 days and really needed some interaction. I jokingly asked if I could pretend a mop was my friend and act out the scenes with it that day.

It was so sweet! They immediately jumped into action and made this amazing mop for me – they even named it Moppy Ringwald! We had the best day together, just dancing around. It was such a fun time!

It’s rare for a filmmaker to completely shift focus and create something just to brighten someone’s day. They have a knack for making even the simplest things feel like a celebration.

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2026-03-23 15:19