Andy Weir’s 2026 Sci-Fi Series Has a Premise So Wild, It Puts Project Hail Mary to Shame

The Martian and Project Hail Mary author Andy Weir is back with a bang (rather an implosion) with a premise so wild that it puts Project Hail Mary to shame. Not literally, but an upcoming audiobook, on which Weir serves as an executive producer, has a highly intriguing premise where the rules of survival are spread across time.

The audiobook recently appeared on Audible, with the first teaser trailer launched recently. Written by Benjamin Percy and executive produced by Andy Weir, Exoplanet follows three members of a spaceship who encounter a quantum anomaly.

Crash-landing on the same hostile planet but separated between three different time periods, the trio attempts to communicate across centuries in order to escape the hostile planet. The whole premise is highly intriguing, and for Weir, it all started with a simple question.

Andy Weir’s Exoplanet Audiobook Started With a Simple Question

Back in August, Andy Weir made a statement about the release of the upcoming audiobook (via Variety). Teasing the plot a little, Weir said that he is obsessed with problems where one person “and a lot of math” are all that stand between survival and disaster.

The author went on to praise Benjamin Percy’s writing in Exoplanet and revealed that the brilliant twist of putting them all in different time periods “genuinely kept me up at night”.

What if the people trying to save each other were separated not by distance, but by centuries? You can’t see that story. You have to hear it. The crackle across a 500-year gap, the desperation in a voice that doesn’t know if anyone’s still listening.

Although the novel is technically written by Benjamin Percy, Andy Weir’s involvement in the project has genuinely put the author in uncharted waters, since almost none of these things have been experienced in his novel so far.

The Martian Author Is Exploring Uncharted Territory With Exoplanet

With his debut novel, Andy Weir highlighted survival in space where the odds are stacked against Mark Watney in The Martian. In the rather unconventional follow-up, Artemis, Andy Weir showed the life of a porter and smuggler who gets caught up in a conspiracy.

Both novels featured a lone protagonist fighting for survival. However, in Project Hail Mary, Weir showed the companionship between Rocky and Grace. The novel featured intense brotherhood and helping each other survive instead of self-survival.

Naturally, it seems that the author is taking his next steps towards quantum mechanics and time-traveling with Exoplanet. Being involved as an executive producer, Weir was exposed to the theories and science behind time-travelling and quantum mechanics, something that might have intrigued him.

Although it cannot be said for certain that Weir’s next novel might feature this deep sci-fi territory, we can’t also deny the fact that Weir’s involvement in Exoplanet could mean something for the author’s own novels.

The Cast of Exoplanet: Who’s Voicing Who

The voice cast for the upcoming Andy Weir audiobook is quite star-studded. In fact, Marvel star Anthony Mackie plays the role of Chief Engineer Jeff Shaw in the audiobook, who is stuck in the present. Joining him are several iconic characters voiced by equally iconic actors.

• Anthony Mackie – Chief Engineer Jeff Shaw, who is stuck in the present.
• Ariana DeBose – First Officer Becca Bang, who is stuck in the past and forced to fight to survive on the alien planet.
• John Leguizamo – Officer Logan Bowers, who finds himself in a machine-ruled future that shouldn’t exist.
• Ray Porter – Jeff Shaw’s virtual assistant.
• Cherry Jones
• Aida Osman
• Charlie Plummer
• Sufe Bradshaw

Naturally, the voice-acting cast of Exoplanet is quite stellar, with composer Rob Cairns creating an original score for the experience. Divided into seven episodes, the audiobook is on the verge of its release date, and we are excited.

Exoplanet will be available to purchase on Audible from November 5.