Humour and science fiction may not seem obvious bedfellows but a history of cinema will tell you different. Think Spaceballs, Mars Attacks! and Everything Everwhere All At Once to name but a few. And now Ryan Gosling is hopping on board.

The 45-year-old is both the lead actor and producer of Project Hail Mary, a space adventure film based on the 2021 Andy Weir novel of the same name.

While Gosling has showcased his comedy chops in films such as Barbie and Nice Guys, he tells the BBC he's "always struggled as an actor because I would want to bring humour to something" but has found opportunities to be funny limited with some projects.

"That's part of the reason why I wanted to produce [this film], because I felt like I needed to create an environment where these things could co-exist," he says.

Gosling says when filming previous roles "something funny would happen and they would cut and they'd say 'oh that's funny but let's go again as those funny things don't happen in life'", but he believed this wasn't necessarily true.

The film, which is named after a last-ditch pass sometimes made in American football, centres around Gosling's character Ryland Grace, a science teacher who through a number of extraordinary circumstances, finds himself on a spaceship with no recollection of how he got there, tasked with saving the world from sun-eating bacteria.

The Canadian actor acknowledges that there is "dense science" in the film, which has just been released in cinemas, but says the overarching "humour helps move [it] along".

"[Space] can be hard to understand but it's important to find a way to make it accessible but also feel realistic - funny things happen in dramatic and sad situations," he adds.

It's a genre of movie he is no stranger to, having starred in Neil Armstrong biography First Man in 2018, whilst he is also set to appear in the upcoming Star Wars: Starfighter space opera.

"Space in general has always been interesting to me, something that I want to understand and need to feel like I do," Gosling says.

He says he keeps going back to films that explore this area to gain more perspectives, adding: "I think I'll make another movie and I'll get it, but I never do so I just go back in and make another one from another angle".

"But obviously it's infinite and very mysterious so I don't think I get the understanding I'm looking for but the process is really gratifying," he adds.

The three-time Oscar nominee says he "surrounded himself with experts" on set - including astronauts, lab technicians, molecular biologists and physicists such as Professor Brian Cox.

Whilst the scientific elements are somewhat complicated, trust is put in viewers to understand what is going on, which fits with the overarching theme of the film according to Gosling - "reminding us of what we're capable of as human beings".

Positivity and problem-solving is at the heart of the film, which includes an ensemble cast of scientists working together around the world to save the sun and the rest of the universe.

Gosling believes the film, which he says he created for families to watch together, provides "an opportunity to pivot away from the dystopian narratives that we've been saturated in for the last decade".

He then repeats the tagline he's been using in recent weeks to promote the film: "Believe the future as something to not be feared, just to be figured out".

Project Hail Mary's production team was assembled by Gosling, including screenwriter Drew Goddard, who adapted another of Weir's novels, The Martian, for the big screen.

He also landed directors Phil Lord and Christopher Miller, who are the duo behind big commercial hits such as Cloudy with a Chance of Meatballs, The Lego Movie and Spider-Man: Into the Spider-Verse.

It has received mostly positive reviews so far, with Empire calling it "witty, wise and preposterously entertaining", whilst Deadline says it is "a mission accomplished, an engaging piece of science fiction".

Less complimentary is Variety, which criticises the film for being too "generic" and "incredibly derivative of movies like Interstellar", whilst The Guardian notes there are "moments of dullness and puppyish silliness" but adds that "Gosling is an effortlessly charming screen player" who keeps the film "watchable".

Gosling's performance in the film has largely been praised by reviewers, following similar assessments of his most recent projects - 2023's Barbie, which saw him nominated for a Golden Globe, Oscar and Bafta award, and 2024's The Fall Guy, which also drew critical acclaim.

Praise for Gosling was echoed by Lord, who says the actor succeeds in creating chemistry with his co-star, a "half CGI, half puppet" alien called Rocky, with whom he works together to try to save the planet.

"Ryan is the special effect - that's the one thing we couldn't fix in post - Ryan's belief and his relationship with this character," he adds.

Miller agrees, noting: "The whole movie rests on their relationship and you believing and caring and ending the movie going 'I would die for that rock' - and I think the reason why it works is because Ryan is such a great performer".

"In addition to being a great emotional actor, he is also a great physical actor because he can do everything," Miller concludes.