The Secret Subplot You Missed In Ryan Gosling's Project Hail Mary

Contains spoilers for "Project Hail Mary"

There are plenty of smaller stories tucked into the larger narrative arc of "Project Hail Mary," the hit sci-fi film based on Andy Weir's book of the same name – if you need a more thorough run-through before heading to your local cineplex, make sure to check out Looper's full explainer. The flashbacks are particularly interesting as they flesh out Ryland Grace's (Ryan Gosling) story and provide critical explanations for why he wakes up in another star system to start the story. There are also different scenes loaded with small details, including one subplot that is very easy to miss: a tattoo on Eva Stratt's (Sandra Hüller) arm.

When SlashFilm's Ethan Anderton spoke with directors Phil Lord and Chris Miller, the question came up about whether any small details were snuck into the movie. Lord immediately replied with two words: Sandra's tattoo. The reference has to do with a theme that the directors initially wanted to weave into the story. In Lord's words: "After Grace went off to space, people did not cooperate. The governments turned on Sandra and dragged her before a criminal court and sent her to prison. And she has a tattoo — this came from Andy [Weir], his idea — so she has a tattoo that says, 'I've been in French prison for life.'"

In the same interview, Chris Miller gave more details about the tattoo — it doesn't literally say "I've been in French prison for life," but that's what it means. "She has a little tattoo that has a V with a line through it, meaning V as in life and then the line meaning without parole," Miller explained, confirming that it shows up in the last scene with Stratt, right before we shift to wrap things up with Grace.

The director also elaborated on Andy Weir's story behind the symbol (the author was present on the set helping with the adaptation): "Andy thought that she had gone to prison without parole, but then had broken out of prison from her connections and then was sort of on the lam trying to still trying to save the world."

Miller explained that part of the reason for such a subtle hint is to build depth. Adding details that are bound to be missed by the vast majority of viewers creates a sense of richness. There is intention all over the place in this film, indicating that more is going on behind the scenes than we're seeing in the main narrative.

The best part about Weir, Lord, and Miller's secret tattoo subplot is that they didn't make it up — it has a basis in Weir's original book. In a later scene that got cut from the script due to time constraints, Stratt is about to nuke Antarctica in a desperate attempt to release greenhouse gases and insulate the Earth. As she prepares such an upsetting course of action, she casually observes, "Once the Hail Mary launches, my authority ends. I'll probably be put on trial by a bunch of p***ed-off governments for abuse of power. Might spend the rest of my life in jail."

In the book, we never get a final verdict on Stratt's fate. But obviously, in Weir's on-screen edition of his story, that's precisely what happened. After wielding ultimate authority in a crisis, Stratt lays down her authority, is imprisoned, and then ends up on the run as years go by and the Earth clings to the thread of hope she created in the Hail Mary project. Check out Looper's review of "Project Hail Mary" for our take on this hopeful space adventure.