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The Martian trailer: Matt Damon stars in upcoming sci-fi movie

'Martian' is based on the book of the same name by Andy Weir. If it follows the book's plotline, it will be another of the films involving space with hopeful messages to have been released within the last few years.

A new trailer has been released for the upcoming movie “The Martian.”

“Martian” is based on the book of the same name by Andy Weir, which tells the story of astronaut Mark Watney. Mark is left behind on Mars by his crew members, who believe him to be dead. Mark must make contact with NASA and find a way to survive in the meantime.

Actor Matt Damon has taken on the role of Mark and the movie co-stars Jeff Daniels, Jessica Chastain, Chiwetel Ejiofor, Kristen Wiig, Kate Mara, and others. The film is directed by sci-fi movie legend Ridley Scott, who previously helmed such movies as “Blade Runner” and “Alien.”

[Editor's note: This article has been updated to correct the name of one of the actresses who appears in the trailer.] 

If it’s like the book, “The Martian,” which is set to be released this November, will be another science fiction movie with a hopeful message. 2013 saw the release of the movie “Gravity,” which was nominated for (and considered a frontrunner for) the Best Picture Oscar. “Gravity” centered on engineer Ryan Stone (Sandra Bullock), who becomes stranded in space after her shuttle is destroyed. Because of the seeming impossibility of her task and her despair over the recent death of her daughter, Ryan briefly loses hope over ever returning to Earth, but rallies and successfully makes her way back to her home planet.

Another recent sci-fi movie, 2014’s “Interstellar,” also ends on a hopeful note. In the movie, former astronaut Cooper (Matthew McConaughey) and his crew set out to try to find a planet for residents of Earth to colonize because it has become almost impossible to grow crops on Earth. With the help of Cooper, Cooper’s daughter Murph (Chastain) is able to solve a gravity equation and ensure that humanity can continue to survive in other areas of space. (Ironically, that movie also stars Matt Damon.)

Meanwhile, the book “Martian” stresses the importance of teamwork and ingenuity, according to Weir. He compared his book to the movie “Apollo 13,” another uplifting movie about space travel, in an interview with the website Shelf Awareness. 

“It's like MacGyver in space, with billions of dollars of equipment being misappropriated to barely stay alive, and everybody working together,” he said of the book. “And I just love that.”

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