Long-Awaited Adaptation Of The Martian Author’s Moon-Set Bestseller Is Still Alive, Confirms Directors 8 Years Later: “We Figured Out A Way”

After eight years of development, the movie adaptation of the novel Artemis is still happening.

The movie Artemis is based on the popular novel by Andy Weir, who also wrote The Martian. It takes place in Artemis, the first and only city built on the Moon. The story centers on Jazz Bashara, a struggling smuggler who accepts a job that could change everything, but quickly finds herself caught up in a dangerous plot concerning the city itself. Directors Phil Lord and Christopher Miller were brought on board to create the film adaptation back in 2017.

During a conversation with ScreenRant’s Liam Crowley about Project Hail Mary, Andy Weir and the team revealed that Artemis is still being worked on. Weir explained that a significant hurdle in the development process is accurately portraying zero gravity. You can find their full statements below.

Chris Miller: We are still actively developing it, and there’ll be more to come.

The biggest challenge with filming the moon scenes was recreating the lower gravity – it’s about one-sixth of what we experience on Earth. What’s great about this movie is we actually filmed those low-gravity effects practically, figuring out a way to do it without spending an enormous amount of money.

Ridley Scott’s 2015 film adaptation of The Martian was a success, even earning an Oscar nomination. However, Andy Weir’s follow-up novel, Artemis, has been difficult to get off the ground since the film rights were purchased in the late 2010s. Despite these challenges, the project is still in development almost ten years later, which indicates the team is dedicated to making the lunar thriller a reality.

While The Martian was largely confined to a single location, Artemis requires a vibrant and complex lunar city to bring its story to life—a place where the unique challenges of living on the moon, like zero gravity, intersect with a criminal underworld. This complexity has made adapting the book a lengthy process, but the filmmakers now seem to be making significant progress.

Their optimism about Artemis is likely boosted by the upcoming release of Project Hail Mary. This new film, based on Andy Weir’s 2021 hit novel, features Ryan Gosling as a scientist sent on a dangerous, one-way mission to save Earth. The planet is threatened by a strange microorganism that’s dimming the sun, and during his journey, he forms an unlikely bond with an alien named Rocky as they work together to find a solution.

The success of the movie Project Hail Mary might help solve some of the production challenges facing the Artemis project. The trailers for Project Hail Mary have already given viewers a glimpse of its impressive visuals, exciting alien life, and a captivating performance by Ryan Gosling.

Although there’s been good news about the project, Artemis is still being developed and doesn’t have a confirmed release date or cast yet, aside from screenwriter Geneva Robertson-Dworet (Captain Marvel), who signed on in 2018. Still, these recent comments from the directors are a positive sign for fans who have been waiting for nearly ten years to see this adaptation come to life.

With Hollywood becoming more receptive to big science fiction ideas, the Artemis project seems to be gaining traction. If the filmmakers can build on the success and technical achievements of Project Hail Mary, audiences might finally get a visually stunning and exciting adaptation of Jazz Bashara’s adventures on the moon.

2026-02-28 18:40

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