In Other Fields
The term "Hail Mary pass" has become generalized to refer to any last-ditch effort with little chance of success.
In basketball, A "Hail Mary shot" or "Hail Mary throw" is a shot thrown from a place far away from the basket (e.g. behind the half court line.)
There are similar usages in other fields, such as a "Hail Mary shot" in photography where the photographer holds the view finder of an SLR camera far from his eye (so unable to compose the picture), usually high above his head, and takes a shot. This is often used in crowded situations
In 1991, Norman Schwarzkopf (Desert Storm commander) likened his strategy of flanking Iraqi defenders (by sending his forces in a westward direction to get behind them) to a Hail Mary play.
During the 2008 United States presidential election, Senator Chuck Schumer criticized John McCain's vice presidential pick, Alaska Governor Sarah Palin, by calling it a "Hail Mary pass". The term was also applied to his decision to suspend his campaign, and later, to his attempt to win Pennsylvania and "toss-up" states in order to win the election.
In the 1996 movie Executive Decision, commander in charge Lieutenant Colonel Austin Travis (Steven Seagal) describes the severity of a possible mission to Pentagon officials as 'Hail Mary'. This phrase eventually employed as the code name of the mission, denoting to its last-chance nature.
In the 2010 movie Extraordinary Measures, Dr. Robert Stonehill (Harrison Ford) uses the phrase during his conversation with John Crowley (Brendan Fraser) referring to chance of approval for sibling trial (a clinical trial) of an enzyme developed for treatment of Pompe; John Crowley's two kids are suffering from Pompe.
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