TV Article Donald Glover runs circles around Jeff Daniels in new clip from The Martian By Shirley Li Shirley Li Shirley is a staff writer covering movies and TV. Before EW, she wrote for The Atlantic and Wired. Long before that, she wrote (and never sent) fan letters to J.K. Rowling, the Spice Girls, and Pikachu. EW's editorial guidelines Published on September 11, 2015 06:50PM EDT Photo: 20th Century Fox To save Matt Damon, NASA will need Childish Gambino. In this latest clip from The Martian above, NASA’s best and brightest listen as astrodynamicist Rich Purnell (Donald Glover) explains a maneuver he believes can rescue Mark Watney (Matt Damon) and bring him home. In the book, Purnell is a meticulous (if eccentric) engineer who nerds out over his solution. In the film, Glover injects some comedy into the character: He uses NASA chief Teddy Sanders (Jeff Daniels) and PR director Annie (Kristen Wiig) as props representing Earth and Mars, respectively. “I’ve done the math,” he says. “Checks out.” That “math” involves using the Hermes — the ship carrying Watney’s fellow astronauts from the Ares 3 crew back to Earth — as a resupply ship that would accelerate around Earth thanks to the planet’s gravity. By changing its course, it can pick up supplies, head back to Mars, pick up Watney on a fly-by, and then head home. You can guess from the room’s reaction that the actual execution of the plan is more complicated and dangerous than the math. The Martian lands in theaters Oct. 2. 20th Century Fox •Why Matt Damon really wanted to do The Martian •Toronto Film Festival: 15 movies you can’t afford to miss •Matt Damon gets blown away in first clip for The Martian WANT MORE EW? Subscribe now to keep up with the latest in movies, television and music.