Bravery Is Not a Gene

It’s a tiny comment commander Yáo makes in passing, literally while taking the lab tour with Dr. Ryland Grace, and yet, in 10 seconds, one line neatly ties together the entire theme of the movie adaptation of Andy Weir’s Project Hail Mary.

Grace, a failed biologist with kooky theories, somehow ends up in charge of analyzing the strange alien substance quickly devouring the sun. He makes great strides in understanding “astrophage,” as he dubs the mysterious organism, and even figures out how to use it to power the spaceship meant to make Earth’s last-ditch attempt at survival.

Alas, for all his wit, Grace isn’t the boldest of human specimens. So when the astronaut team of the mission swings by his workplace—all of whom know they’re going to die in space, even if their mission were to be successful—he tries his best to acknowledge their sacrifice.

“Commander Yáo, I really appreciate what you all are doing,” Grace says. “You would do the same.” Yáo answers in kind. But, to the contrary, “I would choose just not to go at all.” Despite Yáo’s laughter, Grace insists: “I don’t have the bravery gene that you all have. Trust me.” And that’s when Yáo turns Grace’s world upside down: “It’s not a gene. You just need to find someone to be brave for.”

As with many of our most important lessons, Grace does not learn this one the first time around. So when the crew’s scientist dies unexpectedly, he doesn’t exactly willingly take his spot on a rocket meant to never return. After he wakes up nearly five years later, alone in space, faced with few memories and overwhelmingly crushing odds, Grace’s first reaction is panic.

But then, flashback by flashback, bit by bit, Grace starts crawling out of the universe-sized hole he finds himself in. And of course, when the time comes to collaborate with an unlikely ally to save not one but two planets, Grace does find that someone to kick his courage into gear.

Everyone is afraid. It’s the default human condition. Always scared—but never stopping. Bravery is not a gene, yet all of us can discover it in our hearts—not for ourselves but for one another.