Sandra Bullock’s Character in ‘Gravity’ Was ‘Disappointing’ to Astronaut Chris Hadfield
Astronaut Chris Hadfield has participated in two spacewalks, been to space thrice, and has been the commander of the International Space Station. His opinion is, therefore, very valuable when it comes to the accuracy of many space films. The astronaut said Sandra Bullock‘s character in Gravity was “disappointing.”
Sandra Bullock took home $70 million for ‘Gravity’
Bullock is a well-established actor with 59 acting credits, according to IMDb. In 2013, Bullock starred in Gravity, playing a medical engineer named Dr. Ryan Stone. The movie followed Bullock’s character going on her first shuttle mission and partnering with George Clooney’s Matt Kowalski.
Kowalski is an experienced astronaut on his last mission before retiring. The mission initially goes well, but during a routine spacewalk, disaster hits. The shuttle is destroyed, and the two astronauts are left stranded in deep space without any connection to Earth and no hope of rescue. As they start to panic, they realize that the only way to get back to Earth is to venture deeper into space.
Gravity was a critical and commercial success earning $732.2 million against a $130 million budget. The film has a 96% rating on Rotten Tomatoes. The film received several accolades, and although Bullock didn’t win an Oscar for her role, she went home with a huge consolation prize.
According to The Hollywood Reporter, Bullock was paid $20 million upfront. A slight wrinkle in her contract guaranteed that the actor would take 15% of the profit, seeing Bullock walk away with $70 million.
The huge paycheck makes sense given Bullock’s star status. Additionally, she took over Angelina Jolie, who’d dropped out of the movie, and the studio knew it needed an A-list star who could command the screen for the larger portion of the film where she was alone.
Astronaut Chris Hadfield was disappointed by Sandra Bullock’s character in ‘Gravity’
Although critics praised Gravity for its storyline and visuals, NASA astronaut Hadfield condemned it for its inaccurate portrayal of female astronauts. Speaking to Vanity Fair, Hadfield began by acknowledging the contributions of female astronauts like Peggy Whitson.
He said, “The most experienced astronaut in American history is a woman. It’s [Peggy] Whitson. She’s been in space longer than any other American. She commanded the International Space Station twice. She’s done ten space walks. She was NASA’s chief astronaut.”
Hadfield took offense to Bullock’s helplessness in Gravity, saying, “When she’s faced with a problem, she’s panicking and has no idea what to do, and [George] Clooney is driving around like some sort of space cowboy as the only person who really knows what’s going on.”
The astronaut opined that Gravity created a false and harmful narrative about what women can do, saying, “I think it set back a little girl’s vision of what a woman astronaut could be.” He lauded Bullock’s performance but called her character “really disappointing.”
The role of women in space exploration
Valentina Tereshkova was the first woman to fly in space on June 16, 1963, aboard the Vostok 6 space capsule. Tereshkova wasn’t a trained pilot but was chosen for her parachuting abilities. Sally Ride was the first American woman in space in June 1983.
Katherine Coleman Goble Johnson was a mathematician who successfully calculated the orbital mechanics critical to the US manned space flights. Her story inspired the Taraji P. Henson film Hidden Figures.
In 2020, Jessica Mire and Christina Koch led the first all-female spacewalk despite several obstacles. The mission was rescheduled for nearly a year because NASA lacked enough medium-sized spacesuits. According to NASA, 75 women out of 600 human beings have been to space despite some studies suggesting that women might be better suited for longer missions in space.
