The Adam Project

S. Nowlin">T. S. Nowlin, Jennifer Flackett, and Mark Levin. The movie stars Ryan Reynolds, Walker Scobell in his film debut, Mark Ruffalo, Jennifer Garner, Catherine Keener and Zoe Saldaña. In the film, fighter pilot Adam Reed (Reynolds) crash lands in 2022 after getting injured while stealing a time jet, and meets his 12-year-old self (Scobell) in the process, who had been dealing with the loss of his father Louis (Ruffalo) the year before. All-the-while, Maya Sorian (Keener), leader of the dystopian world and head of her company Sorian, plans to monopolize time travel.

The Adam Project
Official release poster
Directed by	Shawn Levy
Written by	Jonathan Tropper T. S. Nowlin Jennifer Flackett Mark Levin
Produced by	David Ellison Dana Goldberg Don Granger Shawn Levy Ryan Reynolds
Starring	Ryan Reynolds Mark Ruffalo Jennifer Garner Walker Scobell Catherine Keener Zoe Saldaña
Cinematography	Tobias Schliessler
Edited by	Dean Zimmerman Jonathan Corn
Music by	Rob Simonsen
Production companies	Skydance 21 Laps Entertainment Maximum Effort
Distributed by	Netflix
Release date	March 11, 2022 (2022-03-11)
Running time	106 minutes
Country	United States
Language	English
Budget	$116 million

Production on the film first began in 2012 with Tom Cruise attached to star. The film then fell into development hell until Netflix acquired the distribution rights. Filming commenced in November 2020 and wrapped in March 2021. Rob Simonsen composed the score.

The Adam Project began a limited "one night only" theatrical release on March 9, 2022 followed by its streaming release on March 11. The film received mixed reviews from critics, who praised the performances, action sequences, visual effects, and its inspiration from 1980s movies, but criticized its writing and storyline.

In a dystopian 2050, fighter pilot Adam Reed steals a time jet to escape to 2018 to save his wife, Laura, who was ordered by Sorian to be assassinated. During his escape, he is injured and crash-lands in 2022, where he encounters his 12-year-old self, who has been suspended after being bullied in school, and is distant from his mother Ellie after the death of their father, Louis Reed in 2021. At first, Young Reed distrusts his future self, but realizes his existence when 2050 Adam mentions his life and his pet dog. 2050 Adam decides to bring his younger self along to find Laura in 2018 once his injuries are healed.

Both Adams are soon attacked by Maya Sorian, the leader of the dystopian world, and her assistant Christos, but are saved by Laura, who has faked her death and stayed off-grid in an unknown location via a gun and the plasmic Mag-Cyl. After briefly losing the pursuers, Laura and the Adams realize that after the invention of time travel by Louis and his subsequent death, Sorian has monopolized the discovery. Laura has learned Sorian frequently came and advised her 2018 self to secure her future wealth and power. Laura's hideout is discovered by Christos; Laura holds them off while the two Adams escape, sacrificing herself as she is vaporized by Sorian. The Adams escape into 2018, where they visit Louis Reed and attempt to enlist his help, but Louis refuses out of concern for the effects on the time stream. Meanwhile, 2050 Sorian warns her 2018 self about Adam.

The following day, the two Adams set off to destroy the particle accelerator located underground at Sorian Technologies. where they come under attack by Sorian's soldiers waiting for them, but are unexpectedly saved by Louis, who has changed his mind and agrees to guide them. He reveals that destroying the machine will not destroy time travel as long as Sorian has his algorithm with the math and constraints to control the process and decides to destroy the memory unit instead. Meanwhile, 2050 Sorian captures the younger Adam and holds him hostage as Louis and 2050 Adam remove a algorithm memory unit. 2050 Adam distracts Sorian and Christos enough for younger Adam to free himself but this results in damaging the electromagnetic seal around the accelerator, tearing the facility apart.

The Reeds manage to take out Christos after a lengthy fight, but the older Sorian threatens to kill Louis. Louis remains adamant and refuses to hand over the memory unit. Sorian shoots at Louis, but the armor-piercing bullet is altered by the electromagnetic field and hits 2018 Sorian instead, killing her and therefore wiping 2050 Sorian out of existence. The Reeds barely manage to escape the facility's implosion and return home, where they reconcile by playing a game of catch before the Adams fade out and return to their respective timelines. In 2022, the younger Adam has not been suspended, has let go of his anger, and gives his mother a hug.

Sometime in the future, an older and much happier Adam meets Laura during a flight training lecture where she realizes, to Adam's amusement, she has entered the wrong building on the campus. Adam offers to walk her to her building, stating that he has time, and they depart together.

• Ryan Reynolds as Adam Reed (2050), a time pilot who risks his life to try and uncover the truth behind his wife's disappearance.
  • Walker Scobell as 12-year-old Adam (2022), a bullied, asthmatic sixth grader.
  • Isaiah Haegert as 8-year-old Adam (2018).
• Mark Ruffalo as Louis Reed, Adam's father and a brilliant quantum physicist who wrote the algorithm necessary for controlled time travel. Reed died in 2021 in a car accident, and Adam still suffers from depression.
• Jennifer Garner as Ellie Reed, Adam's mother. Garner also portrays her younger self in 2018.
• Catherine Keener as Maya Sorian, a businesswoman who funded Louis' research and later took advantage of his death to monopolize it for her own benefit and create a future where she is the most powerful woman in the world.
  • Keener also portrays her younger self through de-aging, with Lucie Guest as her body double.
• Zoe Saldaña as Laura Shane, Adam's wife and a fellow time pilot left stranded in 2018 after a failed attempt on her life. Saldaña also portrays her alternate version in the changed timeline.
• Alex Mallari Jr. as Christos, Adam and Laura's former colleague, now a ruthless security enforcer employed by Sorian.
• Ben Wilkinson as Derek, Ellie’s new boyfriend.

Development

 

The project, a spec script written by T.S. Nowlin, was initially announced as Our Name Is Adam in October 2012. Paramount Pictures became interested in acquiring the film, and Tom Cruise was attached to star.

The film was revived in July 2020 when it moved to Netflix, with Shawn Levy as director and Ryan Reynolds set to star after previously collaborating on Free Guy (2021), while the latest draft of the script was written by Jonathan Tropper, from previous drafts by Nowlin, Jennifer Flackett and Mark Levin. In November, Jennifer Garner, Zoe Saldana, Mark Ruffalo, Catherine Keener, Alex Mallari Jr. and Walker Scobell were added to the cast.

Filming

Filming commenced in November 2020 in Vancouver, British Columbia, Canada. Filming officially wrapped in March 2021.

Music

Rob Simonsen composed the score. A track from the film titled "The Adam Project" was released as a single on March 3, 2022.

The film began a limited theatrical release only on March 9, 2022 at 7:00PM Eastern Standard Time followed by its release on Netflix on March 11.

Audience viewership

According to Samba TV, 3 million US households watched The Adam Project in its first weekend streaming on Netflix. Samba TV also showed that 384,000 households watched the film within the first 3-days of that period.

Critical response

On the review aggregator website Rotten Tomatoes, 68% of 216 critics' reviews are positive, with an average rating of 6.1/10. The website's consensus reads: "Even if it isn't the most original – or memorable – time-travel adventure, The Adam Project gets by with entertaining action and a likable cast." Metacritic, which uses a weighted average, assigned the film a score of 55 out of 100, based on 48 critics, indicating "mixed or average" reviews.

Ryan Leston of IGN gave it 9 out of 10 and called it a mash-up of Back to the Future and The Last Starfighter. He praised Reynolds for his performance and Scobell for his debut performance. Owen Gleiberman of Variety wrote: "The movie is a total trifle, but it’s often a diverting one — a wide-eyed sci-fi adventure with a screwball buoyancy."

Accolades