Interstellar almost stopped Matt Damon from making this hit movie with 91% Rotten Tomatoes

The narrative weight of “Interstellar” lies in the desperate search for a habitable planet as the atmosphere on Earth becomes increasingly unlivable. During this search, we visit the icy planet approved by Dr. Mann (Matt Damon), who is awakened after decades of cryostasis by Cooper (Matthew McConaughey) and his crew. While Mann’s reports of the planet’s suitability for human survival initially evoke hope, the grim reality of the situation is revealed after Mann attempts to kill Cooper and boards the crew’s spaceship.

This pivotal sequence paints an uncomfortably harsh picture of betrayal, highlighting the human tendency to abandon base empathy in a desperate (and selfish) need to survive. Damon’s appearance, although brief, leaves a memorable mark on the development of the story, as Mann’s cowardice and betrayal sets in motion a dark storyline that only pushes Cooper and Dr. Brand (Anne Hathaway) to do the impossible.

A year later, Damon took on a similar role in Ridley Scott’s “The Martian,” an epic sci-fi adventure that also tested the limits of human courage and perseverance. Like Mann, Dr. Mark Watney (Damon) is also stranded on a nearly inhospitable planet, where he must find a way to communicate with NASA and return home before it’s too late. Comparisons between the roles are inevitable, and Damon himself was initially hesitant to play Watney right after playing the villainous Mann in “Interstellar,” but Scott dismissed his concerns by pointing out that the films were “totally different.” Damon told Yahoo! on her first meeting with Scott and how the famous director immediately allayed her concerns:

“I went to meet him [Scott]then I registered very quickly. I came in and said, I really like this script, but my only hesitation is that I just did “Interstellar,” where I play a guy stuck on a planet. It might be weird if, after taking a year and a half off, I played another guy stuck on a planet. I explained “Interstellar” to him, and he said, “The movies are totally different, it’s going to be really fun.” Let’s do this! » He was so infectious that I couldn’t really say no to him. »

Scott is not wrong that the roles are completely different, as Mark Watney can be seen as the antithesis of Dr. Mann and everything he represents. Let’s examine these differences.

In “Interstellar”, Cooper and Brand arrive a little too late to realize that Dr. Mann’s data on his chosen planet is fabricated, because the latter had accepted the futility of his plans years ago. Mann’s estimates of the icy planet proved incorrect by the time he landed on the surface, but he sent a signal in hopes of rescue. Duplicity seems ingrained in Mann’s personality from the start, as he has no qualms about killing the same people who saved his life and gave him emotional comfort. Although Mann’s initial actions are understandable, his later plan to kill everyone and escape with the device depicts him as morally irredeemable. Mann meets a grisly end while attempting to dock the craft manually, and honestly? It’s absolutely deserved.

On the other hand, Watney’s stranding on Mars in “The Martian” is an unfortunate accident, as his crew assumes he did not survive falling debris during the sandstorm. Watney immediately reasons that he must “make the most of it” if he is to survive, and begins documenting his journey while working on a way to communicate with NASA. Watney has every reason to despair or to believe that no one will come back for him, but his optimism extends to that of his peers, for he ardently believes in human compassion. Of course, this journey is neither easy nor without major obstacles, but Watney maintains his position that the human instinct to save someone who is left behind cannot be ignored.

In contrast, Mann glorifies the survival instinct without considering the survival of those around him, putting his faith in selfishness rather than empathy or compassion. “We can care deeply – selflessly – about those we know, but that empathy rarely extends beyond our field of vision,” Mann lectures Cooper, as he projects his lack of compassion onto the crew, believing that anyone would have done the same.

Furthermore, Watney’s belief in the human capacity to achieve the impossible is not a baseless daydream, as he embodies this quality throughout his journey and does everything he can to achieve this ideal. He also believes that his crew members share this ideal – and he’s right, as evidenced by one of the most exhilarating rescue mission sequences put to film.