Picture this: You’re just an average kid, going about your business, when suddenly, your future self crash-lands in your backyard in a spaceship and storms into your house. Dude’s got a bullet wound, too. He’s you. He’s not you. It’s confusing all around. You’d have a lot of questions, right? That’s the situation Adam Reed (Walter Scobell) is faced with in The Adam Project. Like any time-travel movie, this is a story loaded with convoluted semi-science and outrageous plot twists. But just as the older Adam (Ryan Reynolds) is there to answer his younger self’s burning questions, we are here to answer your OMGs and WTFs. Take a plunge into the wormhole with us below.

Where was the movie filmed?

The Adam Project is close to star Ryan Reynolds’ heart, with its themes of fatherhood, grief and growing up. The setting is no exception: Those gorgeous mountain vistas were captured in Reynolds’ home of Vancouver, British Columbia.

Would your dog really be able to recognize a 30-years-older you?

Since your average dog only lives about 10-13 years, this is a difficult question. But let’s suspend our disbelief, because the odds are on Fido’s side: Dogs have an olfactory memory, meaning they can recall scents even after that smell is no longer with them. Depending on how much your smell changes, a dog would still be able to recognize its owner, even after a long absence. For more information, we reached out to Clive D.L. Wynne, director of the Canine Science Collaboratory at Arizona State University.

“That’s a fairly easy yes, ” Wynne tells Tudum. “Within the limit that, of course, it’s never been observed and never could be. But, certainly, dogs have recognized people after gaps of many years. Charles Darwin reported that his dog recognized him after he came back from four years away traveling around the world on the Beagle.” And that was only Darwin’s second-biggest scientific discovery!

Can a wound really fart?

The future of The Adam Project is full of whizzing hovercraft and light saber-esque gadgets, but perhaps one of its most fantastical elements is quite a bit simpler. When middle-aged Adam first arrives in his younger self’s home, he’s nursing a wound that has a… peculiar quality. “That’s weird,” he says. “It farts when I cough.” It’s a line Reynolds improvised, but let’s be fair: Ryan Reynolds is not a doctor. Can a wound really fart? Tudum reached out to multiple professed “fart experts” but received no comment. But forensic pathologist and author Dr. Judy Melinek tells us this particular wound doesn’t sound like the flatulent kind. 

“From a physiological standpoint, wounds don’t normally make sounds unless there’s some air trapped behind them, and then, if he moves, the air will get released,” Melinek says. “So, the only circumstance I can think of where a wound would make a farting or whooshing sound, releasing some sort of air — because that’s what usually makes sounds, the movement of air — would be if [a] bullet or projectile penetrated... an air-filled cavity.” Such wounds would be potentially lethal within minutes, so, from a scientific point of view, this wound ain’t farting. “That’s the disconnect for me,” Melinek continues. “It’s not that the wound wouldn’t make a sound; wounds can make a sound. But, if they do, that usually suggests that air has entered into a cavity where it’s not supposed to be.” In other words: Watch out for farting wounds.

Is a DNA lock possible?

Reynolds’ middle-aged version of Adam flies a futuristic jet that will only activate for a user who passes its DNA-encoded identity test. When the jet forbids him from flying with a wound, that means the only person who can access it is his younger self. This type of technology technically already exists, but it’s quite a bit more invasive than the film portrays, requiring a physical sample. A more realistic version of the DNA lock might require Ryan Reynolds to spit on it every time he unlocked it.

What would happen if you killed your younger self in the past?

This is what nerds refer to as the “Grandfather Paradox,” meaning that if you traveled back in time and killed your grandfather, you would cease to exist and there would be no one to kill your grandfather. Scientists, science fiction writers and all manner of other overthinkers have pointed to this paradox as evidence that time travel is impossible, but quantum physicists may have already solved it. The solution sees a grandchild born with a one-half probability of killing their grandfather, and their grandfather born with a one-half probability of being killed by their grandchild, which apparently puts you mathematically in the clear. Or, in slightly simpler terms, alternate universes, anyone?

How many g’s could Adam’s fragile child body withstand?

“Try not to pass out from the g’s,” Older Adam tells his young counterpart as he punches the throttle of his hovercraft. Young Adam is not wearing a seat belt or helmet. Could he really have survived that level of acceleration?

As it turns out, it depends on the duration. Air Force officer John Stapp once handled 46.2 g’s, briefly weighing 7,700 pounds, but he only sustained it for a matter of seconds. The average human can sustain about 5 g’s. Fighter jets pull up to 9 g’s, and Adam’s hovercraft seems to move much faster. So, what would happen to Adam(s) if the jet sustained that momentum for an extended period? Well, his blood would get literally heavier, his heart would have trouble pumping it to the brain, and his vision would go gray before he passed out and died. Slow down, Adam!

Who really coined the phrase “Enjoy yourself, it’s later than you think”? Guy Lombardo or the Romans?

When the two Adams travel back in time to meet their shared father (Mark Ruffalo), he invokes a famous Roman saying: “Enjoy yourself, it’s later than you think,” which he says was etched on their sundials. Middle-aged Adam counters, pointing out that the phrase comes from a song by Guy Lombardo and His Royal Canadians. It’s actually the elder Mr. Reed who’s correct about this. The Romans regularly inscribed Latin mottos on their sundials, including Fruere hora (“Enjoy the hour”) and Serius est quam cogitas (“It’s later than you think”). It’s unclear where Lombardo picked up the phrase, but the Romans definitely beat him to the punch.

Are wormholes the most realistic path to realistic time travel?

For a longer answer, check out our dedicated piece on the science (or lack thereof) of The Adam Project. But, in short, yes, a wormhole is probably your best bet for time travel — if we ever figure out how to make one more than just theoretical.

Adam Meets Adam | The Adam Project