'How 'Project Hail Mary' directors secured Meryl Streep's surprise cameo'

Meryl Streep can truly do it all — even lend her voice to a spider-like, rock-shaped alien in Project Hail Mary.

The Ryan Gosling sci-fi movie, directed by the duo Chris Miller and Phil Lord, which premiered in theaters on March 20 to enthusiastic reviews from audiences and critics alike, revolves around a schoolteacher who becomes an astronaut. 

He finds himself aboard a spaceship with no memory of how he got there. As he discovers his mission's objectives, he allies with an intelligent alien he names Rocky.

After Dr. Ryland Grace (Gosling) develops a computerized translation system to converse with Rocky, who communicates by making musical sounds, he selects a voice from a list of pre-set options — one of which belongs to the acclaimed, Oscar-winning actress Streep.

“Our time on set was filled with hilarious voice experiments we did ourselves,” Miller shared with Entertainment Weekly during an interview. “We roped in crew members to do voices to entertain Ryan and give the characters something to play off.”

“We brainstormed voices that might come with a text-to-speech program,” Lord added.

That’s how the duo had a lightbulb moment: “And then we thought, wouldn't it be amazing to have Meryl Streep? Ryan simply said, ‘She can do anything,’ and it was the perfect idea,” Miller revealed. 

“We then decided, ‘Alright, we'll have to reach out to Meryl Streep,’ knowing that Amy Pascal, our producing partner, had previously worked with her on movies such as The Post. So we told her, ‘Amy, you’ve got to—'”

Lord chimed in with a laugh, “You’ve never seen a group of filmmakers put something off for longer. But she agreed, and she was incredible.”

Miller reflected on Streep’s willingness to join in on the surprise, uncredited role: “She was wonderfully playful and creative, trying out countless versions: ‘I can do more. Want me to give this a shot? Try that?’”

In the end, Rocky’s voice is performed by James Ortiz, one of the puppeteers bringing the character to life. 

Although Rocky is primarily created through practical effects, Gosling previously told People magazine that during some scenes he worked alongside stand-ins, including his two daughters.

Project Hail Mary is now showing in theaters.