The actress questions the value of a celebrity-packed 11-minute space trip featuring Katy Perry, Gayle King, and more, calling for greater awareness of real-world issues like food insecurity.
Olivia Munn Isn’t Buying the Glamorous All-Female Space Odyssey
As Blue Origin prepares to launch its first-ever all-female space mission on April 14 — with a star-studded crew including Katy Perry, Gayle King, and Jeff Bezos’ partner Lauren Sanchez — actress Olivia Munn is raising serious questions about its purpose and priorities.
Appearing as guest cohost on TODAY with Jenna & Friends, Munn didn’t mince words. “What are they doing? Like, why?” she asked bluntly during a candid discussion with Jenna Bush Hager. “I know this is not the cool thing to say, but there are so many other things that are so important in the world right now. What are you guys going to do up in space?”
Bush Hager clarified that the trip will last just 11 minutes. “So you’re on like, Magic Mountain,” Munn responded dryly, drawing laughter but sticking to her point. “Also, I just think about— I know this is obnoxious, but it’s so much money to go to space. There’s a lot of people who can’t even afford eggs. Oh my God, if they bring eggs into space!”
Though Perry has stated she’s “not nervous at all,” King has admitted she “hasn’t stopped worrying.” Still, the crew seems more focused on beauty prep than scientific discovery. “They are getting their hair done, their makeup done, even eyelash extensions,” Bush Hager explained. “They said this out loud?” Munn asked in disbelief.
The Magic Mike star criticized the trip as emblematic of excess. “I think it’s a bit gluttonous,” she said. “Space exploration was to further our knowledge and to help mankind. What are they gonna do up there that has made it better for us down here? I mean, I don’t know if all that rocket fuel is good. This is a lot of resources being spent.”
The mission — launched aboard Blue Origin’s New Shepard rocket from West Texas — will mark the rocket’s 11th flight and the first all-female crew since 1963. Alongside Perry, King, and Sanchez, the lineup includes entrepreneur Amanda Nguyen, aerospace engineer Aisha Bowe, and film producer Kerianne Flynn.
While Munn acknowledges that her perspective may not be popular, she’s not alone in asking whether these high-profile, high-cost space escapades are out of touch with the challenges faced by everyday people on Earth. Her critique adds a grounded, sobering voice to a conversation often lost in the glitz of galactic ambition.
