The unexpected announcement from Jason Reitman that he'll be creating another Ghostbusters film, produced by his father (the original film's director, Ivan Reitman), and set in the world of the original films, probably caught even the ghosts themselves off-guard. Now that everyone's had some time to digest that a new film is coming, it's time for some internet takes that could be too hot to handle, and too cold to hold. We don't know much about this new movie, but when has that ever stopped the internet from theorizing? All we know for certain is what Reitman has said thus far, to EW: “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." He added, "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." The first present came in the form of a teaser, set to Elmer Bernstein's iconic music, and features the Ecto-1 being stored in a mystery barn. Video of #GB20 Even though the classic actors, Bill Murray, Dan Aykroyd, Sigourney Weaver, and Ernie Hudson (sadly not the dearly departed Harold Ramis) made cameos in Paul Feig's reboot film, Reitman also makes it clear to EW that the "talented actresses" from that movie will not appear here. This is the Ghostbusters prime universe through and through, so Chris Pine and Karl Urban will also (most likely) not be involved. Over at io9, Germain Lussier offers some first impressions, theorizing that someone in this mystery barn is working on a proton pack. "Who that is or why they are doing that, we don’t know," he writes. "But the car, under the tarp, in a barn, may just suggest that after the events of Ghostbusters II, the Ghostbusters had actually won and there was no need for them anymore. So the Ecto-1 was put in a garage (definitely outside of Manhattan) to collect dust for a few decades and, well, now it’s needed." He adds that all of what he writes is just guessing, but that the cinematography used in the trailer gives him a more "Evil Dead/Stranger Things vibe" than the original films. We can definitely see this going the Stranger Things route — these days it's almost weird not to have misfit kids on bikes in your movie, even if that movie is Mary Queen of Scots. Jessica Chobot points out some details that some may have missed at Nerdist — she too notices an Evil Dead connection, calling the teaser's approach to the mystery barn "Sam Raimi-esque." She points out that a tree near the cabin is sputtered with ectoplasm (which would indicate that there "are some ghosts that definitely need busting"), and that the presence of nefarious weather is probably a harbinger of dark things coming — it always was in the original films, at least. Chobot goes on, saying that the presence of the Ecto-1 stored here at all seems to indicate that the team never became a big Men in Black-like organization, and that after saving the world from Vigo the Carpathian in Ghostbusters II, the boys were probably forgotten and relegated to doing birthday parties again. She also points out the sound of a proton pack being worked on (and activated) in the cabin, with a little bit of energy popping out. The person doing the work could be a "Ghostbuster superfan, a crackpot, or a little bit of both." Also of note: the Ecto-1 seen here is not the fresh-license plate bearing, souped-up "Ecto 1A" from Ghostbusters II— it's the original article, which Chobot admits is probably for nostalgic purposes. The idea posed here, that a (likely toxic) Ghostbusters fanatic is working is on the equipment (which brings out new spectral activity) is interesting — as they say themselves, it is reminiscent of Kylo Ren trying to be Darth Vader 2.0 in Star Wars: The Force Awakens. This kind of merges with a theory found on Reddit, where user "Herobrine2401" posits the same idea: the original Ghostbusters are done, they've left their stuff in a barn, someone came across it all, and they started to rework it and use it. The interesting spin on this take: "What if, the person using or working on the proton pack is Oscar, Dana Barrett’s baby? Maybe Peter did leave to be with her and told Oscar about the ghostbusting business and Oscar decided to find the old equipment and eventually did and started to rebuild the business." A grown-up Oscar (OSCAR!!!) from Ghostbusters II would be cool, and after what Vigo put him through, he might be ready to start driving the Ecto-1 up a mountain of skulls to a castle of pain. Another Reddit user ("u/Pizza_Venkman") points out that everything here could be Ray Stanz-related. The barn could be on Ray's family property, Ray could be the one testing the equipment after "years of non-use," and that there were potential "issues that only Egon had the knowledge to fix." Ray is struggling to make things work again without Egon. What we like (yet are sad about at the same time) about this idea is that the movie won't try to recast Egon Spengler — how could you, how could anyone? In the world of this new Ghostbusters, Egon has passed, and the remaining members have to go on without him. It would be especially hard for Ray. This has the movie involving Egon (and Ramis) without him being physically present— honor the character, and the man behind the character. Recasting (or doing some kind of "Rogue One-Grand Moff Tarkin-Peter Cushing" thing) would not be the best idea. Plenty other Reddit users are wondering if the new film will take the 2009 video game into consideration, which was kind of built up as a new entry of sorts at the time. This seems a little unlikely, but you never know. There's generally a lot of hope on Reddit at the moment, with one user already hoping that the great words of Dr. Janosz Poha from Ghostbusters II won't have to be mentioned in reference to this film: "Everything you're doing is bad. I want you to know this." As for me? Personally I like the crackpot fan theory, though the thought of a grown-up Oscar is also kind of fun. Since this project came out of nowhere (and is already further along than people thought), surely it's only a matter of time before we hear that Murray, Aykroyd, and Hudson will be back — nobody really sees this working without them. Sigourney Weaver would be a necessary inclusion as well (of course), Annie Potts would be great, and if Peter MacNicol (the best thing about Ghostbusters II) wanted to come back, well, that's beyond awesome. If we really want to get to the gold, however, then we know who has to be called. Rick. Moranis. I don't care how they do it, and I don't even care what Louis Tully's story would include. Get Dark Helmet out of retirement and back on our movie screens, and this entire enterprise will be worth it. It'll be two in the box, ready to go, we be fast and they be slow. Possibly like a spirit (some people fear it, some people just won't go near it), this new Ghostbusters project will be upon us in 2020. Which theory do you go for? Crackpot fan in a barn, or grown-up Oscar? Vigo II in a Kylo Ren mask? Somehow managing to incorporate kids on bikes in the '80s? Let us know in the comments.<doc-sep>Jason Reitman, the son of the original Ghostbusters director, Ivan Reitman, will direct and co-write a brand-new Ghostbusters movie, according to Entertainment Weekly. The upcoming film “will be set in the world that was saved decades previously by the proton pack-wearing working stiffs in the original 1984 movie.” It has not been released who will be in the cast of the new movie. The release date would be 2020. “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.” In the original Ghostbusters universe, Peter Venkman (Bill Murray), Ray Stantz (Dan Akroyd), Egon Spengler (Harold Ramis) and Winston Zeddemore (Ernie Hudston) “defeated Gozer the Gozerian … and later dethroned Vigo the Carpathian in 1989’s sequel, Ghostbusters II.” Sigourney Weaver, Rick Moranis, and Annie Potts also starred in the original film, to great acclaim. A different direction was taken in the 2016 release of a new Ghostbusters movie directed by Paul Feig and starring Melissa McCarthy, Kristen Wiig, Kate McKinnon, and Leslie Jones. That film received mixed reviews. Reitman said in the EW interview, “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.” People magazine reported, “Reitman previously directed the Oscar-nominated Up in the Air starring George Clooney in 2009, as well as last year’s Tully starring Charlize Theron. He also helmed 2007’s Juno starring Ellen Page.” Aykroyd came up with the idea for Ghostbusters as a project for himself and his friend John Belushi, traveling through time. After Belushi’s death, it was reworked and Bill Murray co-starred. The quartet star as New York City-based “paranormal investigators.” When their government grants run out, the former three go into business as “Ghostbusters,” later hiring Hudson. The team are overwhelmingly successful, ridding The Big Apple of dozens of ghosts. A bureaucrat, William Atherton, regards the Ghostbusters as charlatans and opposes them, but regrets it when New York is besieged by an army of unfriendly spirits, conjured up by a long-dead Babylonian demon and “channeled” through cellist Sigourney Weaver. Much of the film is ad-libbed in its dialogue, particularly the scenes featuring Bill Murray. The time to film the movie was so limited that original director Reitman later said “the final print included incomplete special effects shots and errors like ‘wires showing’ but, ‘remarkably, people didn’t care.’ ” Scenes in the montage sequence of the Ghostbusters running around New York (and also driving in the Ecto-mobile) were done on the first day, mostly without film permits. Ghostbusters was a tremendous hit, earning more than $200 million. The theme song, by Ray Parker Jr., was also a hit. Eddie Murphy was planning to play the part of Winston, but pursued Beverly Hills Cop instead. Ernie Hudson said later his part was drastically cut. In a 2015 article for Entertainment Weekly, Hudson wrote: “I love the character and he’s got some great lines, but I felt the guy was just kind of there. I love the movie, I love the guys. I’m very thankful to Ivan for casting me. I’m very thankful that fans appreciate the Winston character. But it’s always been very frustrating — kind of a love/hate thing, I guess.” Read another story from us: ‘Coming to America 2’ Moving Forward with Eddie Murphy After Harold Ramis died, fans of the movie paid tribute to him by visiting the New York City firehouse used in the movie and created a makeshift memorial featuring Nestle Crunch Bars (in reference to Venkman giving Spengler a candy bar) and Twinkies (in reference to Spengler using the Twinkie to describe the ghost problem in New York City).<doc-sep>This week, Entertainment Weekly broke some rather exciting news: there's a new Ghostbusters movie in the works! But there's a really exciting and nostalgic twist attached to this new production: it will be directed and co-written by Jason Reitman. If you're not familiar, his father, Ivan Reitman, directed the original Ghostbusters in 1984, as well as 1989's Ghostbusters II. "I've always thought of myself as the first Ghostbusters fan, when I was a six-year-old visiting the set. I wanted to make a movie for all the other fans," Reitman told EW. Talk about a full-circle moment. To do you one better, Reitman plans to pick up right where his father left off. "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." While this does mean he will discount the 2016 all-female entry, he had nothing but good things to say about it: "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." When it comes to the new installment, the senior Reitman will be on board as a producer, officially making it a family affair. "It will be a passing of the torch both inside and out," Ivan Reitman said. "I was quite surprised when he came to me with Gil and said, 'I know I've been saying for 10 years I'm the last person who should make a Ghostbusters movie, but I have this idea.' Literally, I was crying by the end of it, it was so emotional and funny." Great, now we're crying. The new (and presumably still untitled) Ghostbusters film is tentatively slated for a Summer 2020 release. It'll be here faster than you can hum the theme song.<doc-sep>
A new Ghostbusters movie is coming. Entertainment Weekly reports that Jason Reitman, the son of original Ghostbusters director Ivan Reitman, will co-write and direct the new film that is not connected to the 2016 edition featuring an all-female cast of ghost hunters. Specific plot points for Jason Reitman's new movie are being kept under wraps for now, but he did confirm that it's set in the present day. It is not a reboot, but it's a continuation of the original series. [Update: Beyond this news, we've also now gotten a new Ghostbusters teaser trailer.] "This is the next chapter in the original franchise. It is not a reboot," he told EW. "What happened in the '80s happened in the '80s, and this is set in the present day." The new Ghostbusters movie will start shooting later this year, and it's expected to hit theatres in summer 2020. The other writer is Gil Kenan, who earned an Oscar nomination for Monster House. "This is very early, and I want the film to unwrap like a present," Jason Reitman told EW. "We have a lot of wonderful surprises and new characters for the audience to meet." Regarding the new characters, Justin Kroll of the website Variety said Jason Reitman may be looking to cast four teenagers in the lead roles. In the original films, the main characters were played by Bill Murray, Dan Aykroyd, Harold Ramis, Ernie Hudson, and Rick Moranis. Ramis passed away in 2014. Hearing he is currently looking to cast four teenagers for the lead roles — Justin Kroll (@krolljvar) January 16, 2019 Reitman has four Oscar nominations, and some of his best-known films include Juno, Up in the Air, and Thank You For Smoking. Ivan Reitman will produce the new Ghostbusters movie, and he told EW, "It will be a passing of the torch both inside and out." He said his son Jason came to him with the idea for the new film, and it left him in awe. " "I was quite surprised when he came to me with Gil and said, 'I know I've been saying for 10 years I'm the last person who should make a Ghostbusters movie, but…I have this idea.' Literally, I was crying by the end of it, it was so emotional and funny," he said. Go to Entertainment Weekly to read the full story on the new Ghostbusters movie.