I ain’t afraid of no ghost… The Ghostbusters are back. It has been confirmed ‘The Front Runner,’ ‘Juno’ and ‘Up in the Air’ filmmaker Jason Reitman, son of original ‘Ghostbusters’ director Ivan, is to take the helm for a direct sequel to the original two films.
“I’ve always thought of myself as the first Ghostbusters fan, when I was a 6-year-old visiting the set. I wanted to make a movie for all the other fans,” Reitman told Entertainment Weekly. “This is the next chapter in the original franchise. It is not a reboot. What happened in the ‘80s happened in the ‘80s, and this is set in the present day.”
“This is very early, and I want the film to unwrap like a present. We have a lot of wonderful surprises and new characters for the audience to meet,” he continued. “I’ve thought about this franchise and it has occupied a piece of my heart for basically as long as I can remember.”
There’s no word yet on whether anyone from the original cast will be involved, however Dan Aykroyd did comment last year that there was “possibility of a reunion with the three remaining Ghostbusters”, which would include himself, Bill Murray, and Ernie Hudson. Sadly, Harold Ramis died in 2014 from an auto-immune disease..
When asked about Paul Feig’s female-led reboot starring Melissa McCarthy, Kristen Wiig, Kate McKinnon and Leslie Jones, Reitman replied, “I have so much respect for what Paul created with those brilliant actresses, and would love to see more stories from them. However, this new movie will follow the trajectory of the original film.”
Reitman will co-write new ‘Ghostbusters’ movie with ‘Monster House’ and ‘Poltergeist’ remake director Gil Kenan. Ivan Reitman is on board to serve as producer.