New 'Ghostbusters' Won't Acknowledge Previous Films in the Series

Well, this is terrible news. In an interview with Entertainment Weekly, Paul Feig, director of the forthcoming female-focused Ghostbusters film, stated that the new flick is a complete reboot with no connection to the first two installments in the franchise.

"It's not coming into the world that existed before," Feig told EW. "It’s always hard if the world has gone through this big ghost attack, how do you do it again? I wanted to come into our world where there’s talk of ghosts but they’re not really credible, and so what would happen in our world if this happened today?"

Feig added that members of the original Ghostbusters cast are welcome to appear in cameo roles, but they will not play the same characters. This new film is a clean slate, telling a story in which busting ghosts is a brand-new science and New York City hasn't been ravaged by a giant monster made out of marshmallows. Yikes. Why bother?

Human sacrifice, dogs and cats living together, bad ideas. For the full story, visit EW.com.

All-New, All-Girl 'Ghostbusters' Sequel Confirmed

We're finally getting another Ghostbusters movie, and it's not at all what we were expecting. The third film in the franchise will reportedly feature a group of women wielding the neutrino wands this time around, a change that has many longtime fans feeling like they just had a run-in with a Class 5 full-roaming vapor. Is this all a publicity-grabbing stunt? Well, maybe not.

Paul Feig, who helmed female-focused comedies Bridesmaids and The Heat, will direct the anticipated reboot of the beloved series, with The Heat writer Katie Dippold signed on to pen the screenplay. No casting announcements have yet been made, but it's safe to assume Kristen Wiig and Melissa McCarthy are in the mix.

Admittedly, regardless of the genders of its protagonists, I'm disappointed that we're moving forward with a third Ghostbusters without the original cast at the forefront, but I also understand that reuniting the original 'busters isn't exactly possible. Harold Ramis passed away earlier this year, and it's not like Bill Murray is interested in stepping back into Peter Venkman's jumpsuit anytime soon. As long as the new film is funny and retains the spirit of the Ivan Reitman original, I'm on board.

For more on this story, visit The Hollywood Reporter by clicking here.

‘Ghostbusters 3’ News Continues to Slime the Internet, Baffle Fans

I could hardly contain my excitement upon realizing that my return to the blogosphere coincided with yet another exhausting piece of Ghostbusters 3 information that’s got a lot of people talking … or facepalming, I’m not sure which.

As reported by Deadline.com, veteran Ghostbusters director Ivan Reitman is expected to film the highly anticipated third movie in the Sony Pictures franchise next summer without its biggest star, Bill Murray. Take this for what it is, but it’s clear among Hollywood brass that Ghostbusters 3 is at least a possibility, and evidently isn’t the joke that everyone else seems to think it is.

So, Ghostbusters 3 is still a thing that might or might not happen, but someone, somewhere is taking it seriously. Yay?

For the full story, click here.

‘Ghostbusters 3’ to Enter Production Within the Year?

In yet another vague update on the status of Ghostbusters 3, Dan Aykroyd recently told Metro that the film is indeed moving forward and that Bill Murray will not be involved at all.

“It’s sad but we're passing it on to a new generation,” Aykroyd said of Murray’s refusal to participate in a second Ghostbusters sequel. “Ghostbusters 3 can be a successful movie without Bill. My preference would be to have him involved but at this point he doesn’t seem to be coming and we have to move on. It’s time to make the third one.”

Says Aykroyd the film has a new screenwriter and could be in production “in the next year.”

Mr. Aykroyd, with all due respect, I’m NOT ready to believe you.

For the full story, click here.

Dan Aykroyd Says ‘Ghostbusters 3’ Will Happen With or Without Bill Murray

Mr. Dan Aykroyd, you’ve accomplished many things. You’ve been in some of the biggest comedies of all time—Caddyshack 2 notwithstanding—and you’ve used your celebrity to launch a pretty good brand of vodka with an aesthetically pleasing bottle. However, your fascination with making Ghostbusters 3 with or without the involvement of Peter Venkman himself, Bill Murray, is a bit troubling.

In a recent interview on The Dennis Miller Show, Aykroyd said that the plan is to start shooting next spring whether or not Murray finally agrees to participate.

“Yes, we will be doing the movie and hopefully with Mr. Murray,” the actor said. “That is our hope. We have an excellent script. What we have to remember is that Ghostbusters is bigger than any one component, although Billy was absolutely the lead and contributive to it in a massive way, as was the director and Harold [Ramis], myself and Sigourney [Weaver]. The concept is much larger than any individual role and the premise of Ghostbusters 3 is that we get to hand the equipment and the franchise down to new blood.”

You know, I’d love to be excited about this, Ghostbusters fanboy that I am. But come on. One of the reasons why the original Ghostbusters film worked so well was the fact that Peter didn’t really take the ghostbusting thing all that seriously. He counteracted the stoic nerdiness of Egon Spengler (Ramis) and the giddy exuberance of Ray Stanz (Aykroyd). You add in the blue-collar sensibilities of Winston Zeddemore (Ernie Hudson) and you have the perfect team dynamic. Without Peter, things would fall apart pretty quickly, and we’d end up with something a lot worse than Ghostbusters 2.

He went on to say that in the new movie, Ray will be blind in one eye and unable to drive the Ecto-1, while Egon will be too fat to strap on his proton pack. Hilarity will ensue, apparently.

“We need young blood and that’s the premise,” Aykroyd said. “We’re gonna hand it to a new generation.”

Aykroyd wants the new team to include three guys and a young woman. To listen to the whole interview, head over to DennisMillerRadio.com.

Dan Aykroyd Addresses 'Ghostbusters 3' Rumors

A third Ghostbusters movie is apparently still happening, even though all evidence (and common sense) seems to point to the contrary.

In an e-mail to horror website Bloody-Disgusting, a reader notes that Ghostbusters 3 producer/writer/star Dan Aykroyd said in a recent WGN Radio Chicago interview that casting for the film is underway, and that fresh faces such as Bill Hader, Anna Faris and Eliza Dushku are being considered. Aykroyd also confirmed Bill Murray and Sigourney Weaver’s involvement as well as the production’s May 2011 start date.

But like all Ghostbusters 3 news, take this with a grain of salt. Or, more appropriately, an ounce of ectoplasm.

He’s Got the Tools, He’s Got the Talent

At Spike TV’s Scream 2010 awards show, Bill Murray shockingly appeared in his iconic Ghostbuster uniform to accept the best horror movie award for Zombieland, for which he also won best cameo honors in recognition of his brief (but wholly memorable) appearance as himself. However, the comedy legend was quick to remind fans that there was no hidden message behind his choice of outfit. In other words, this doesn’t mean he’s signed on for Ghostbusters 3—or if it’s even happening.

“I don’t mean anything by this, it’s just all that was left that was clean,” Murray quipped in reference to his Peter Venkman garb, complete with a fairly realistic proton pack. Of course, it’s very likely that he just loves screwing with us.

Watch the clip below.

Bill Murray Dusts Off the Old Suit - FULL CLIP | SpikeTV | SPIKE.com

'Ghostbusters 3' Has a Script?

If you’re like me, you’re probably pretty frustrated with the constant barrage of Ghostbusters 3 non-news that’s been hitting the Web over the past year or so. At this point, I’m convinced it’s never happening, and the sooner we all come to terms with the fact that last summer’s Ghostbusters: The Video Game is the closest we’re going to get to a third Ghostbusters movie, the better off we’re all going to be.

But if you’re clamoring for more wishful thinking disguised as news, I’d like to direct your attention to a piece I stumbled across on IGN. Reportedly, Stefano Paganini, Sony Pictures Home Entertainment’s product manager for Catalogue, and TV Series, announced at Rome’s Ghostbusters Day 2010 (yup, they love Ghostbusters in Italy) that “the script for Ghostbusters 3 has been approved so the engine is turned on!”

That’s all well and good, but until I hear something more official than this—or at least until Bill Murray stops vehemently denying that the project is at all moving forward—I’m going to assume that there is no Ghostbusters 3—only Zuul.

Bill Murray Disses ‘Ghostbusters 3’ Yet Again

Since the only consistent, concrete news about the status of Ghostbusters 3 is Bill Murray’s vehement denial that it’s coming together in the slightest, it’s pretty unlikely that we’re going to be seeing another Ghostbusters sequel anytime soon.

“It’s all a bunch of crock,” the comedy legend told GQ. “There was a story—and I gotta be careful here, I don’t want to hurt someone’s feelings. When I hurt someone’s feelings, I really want to hurt them. [laughs] Harold Ramis said, ‘Oh, I’ve got these guys, they write on The Office, and they’re really funny. They’re going to write the next Ghostbusters.’ And they had just written this movie that he had directed.”

The movie in question? Year One, perhaps one of 2009’s biggest box office bombs. But don’t mistake Ramis’ Jack Black and Michael Cera vehicle as an unsung cult comedy—the movie was painfully unfunny. When that movie tanked, one can presume, so did Office writers Gene Stupnitsky and Lee Eisenberg’s chance to revive the dormant series, possibly forcing Sony Pictures to go back to the proverbial drawing board.

“Well, I never went to see Year One, but people who did, including other Ghostbusters, said it was one of the worst things they had ever seen in their lives,” Murray said. “So that dream just vaporized. That was gone. But it’s the studio that really wants this thing. It’s a franchise. It’s a franchise, and they made a whole lot of money on Ghostbusters.”

Murray went on to admit that although he’s been standoffish in the past, he’s surprisingly warmed up to the idea of once again reprising his role as ghost-nabbing parapsychologist Peter Venkman in another Ghostbusters film.

“I was down in Austin at South by Southwest, and you go at it hard down there—fun but, man, you need to sleep for days afterwards,” the notoriously reclusive actor explained. “Anyhow, I got into it one night with a bunch of younger people who were like, ‘Oh, I love Peter Venkman! I grew up with Peter Venkman!’ We got to talking, and the more we talked about it, the more I thought, ‘Oh Christ, I should just do this thing.’”

I, for one, hope he gets the chance someday. Click here to read the full interview.

Bill Murray Calls Ghostbusters 3 “Hogwash”

Sure, there has been a lot of news about Ghostbusters 3 over the last year or so, but it’s beginning to seem less and less likely the film will ever materialize. During an early March appearance on The Late Show with David Letterman, series star Bill Murray dismissed the anticipated sequel as “crazy talk.” Later that month, Vulture reported that Columbia Pictures was trying to remove Ghostbusters director Ivan Reitman from the project in favor of a younger director. So what’s the deal? Are we getting more Ecto Cooler or not?

In a recent interview with Cinema Blend, Murray once again trashed the idea of a third Ghostbusters flick, calling it a “myth.”

“All this talk is just talk,” he said. “Until someone actually creates a great script it’s just hogwash, it doesn’t mean anything.”

Reportedly, the writing team of Gene Stupnitsky and Lee Eisenberg (The Office) has already turned in a script. Has Murray not yet read the script, or was he just unimpressed with it? As Cinema Blend points out, these guys wrote the script for the abysmal Year One, so it’s very likely that what they came up with just wasn’t that good.

Columbia Pictures Doesn’t Want Ivan Reitman for Ghostbusters 3

Well, this is quite the bombshell. Just weeks after Bill Murray trashed the idea of a third Ghostbusters film on The Late Show with David Letterman, dismissing the long-awaited project as “crazy talk,” Vulture is reporting that Columbia Pictures is now trying to oust 63-year-old series director Ivan Reitman in favor of someone younger. However, in accordance with his old contract, Reitman has exceptional creative control over the franchise, which includes director approval. Therefore, Reitman can’t force the studio to keep him on as director, but he can pretty much ensure that Ghostbusters 3 won’t get made without him.

Reitman—along with principal ‘busters Murray, Dan Aykroyd and Harold Ramis—have a deal stipulating that if any one of them disapproves of any aspect of the third film, they can kill the project. If Reitman isn’t on board, there’s really no way this film can happen. If you’re in any way looking forward to Ghostbusters 3, this is very bad news.

The Office writers Lee Eisenberg and Gene Stupnitsky are turning in a second draft of the script in May. The film—if it goes into production—will feature the four original Ghostbusters training a team of younger recruits. If it’s successful, Ghostbusters 3 could spawn more films starring the new team. If not, we’ll always have Ghostbusters: The Video Game, which is basically a continuation of the film series.

Vulture dug up a fascinating quote from a 1989 Los Angeles Times interview, in which Reitman explains why no Ghostbusters sequel will ever work as well as the 1984 original.

“Ghostbusters 2 wasn’t as fun to make as the first one,” he said. “In comedy, the element of surprise is everything. And I think once that element of surprise is gone, once people know there’s going to be ghosts, there’s going to be big ghosts, and they’re expecting something big at the end, a lot of the tools that are at your disposal are gone.”

Bill Murray Calls Ghostbusters 3 His “Nightmare”

While nursing a leg injury, comedy legend Bill Murray made a hilarious appearance on The Late Show with David Letterman last night, wearing a shiny purple shirt, gigantic snow boots and a furry hat. On him, the outfit made sense somehow.

Naturally, Letterman brought up Ghostbusters 3, which Murray referred to as his “nightmare.” Reaffirming what he’s said in previous interviews, Murray explained that the only way he’ll return as Dr. Peter Venkman in a third Ghostbusters movie is if the character dies in the first reel. “So now they’ve figured out a way to kill me off,” he said. By the way, his leg was in a sling for pretty much the entire interview. Like his outfit, the absurdity of the situation seemed natural.

Series veteran Ivan Reitman has already confirmed that he’s returning for Ghostbusters 3, while Lee Eisenberg and Gene Stupnitsky (The Office) are working on a script. Original cast members Dan Aykroyd, Harold Ramis and Ernie Hudson have also confirmed their involvement.

Murray admitted that he had a great time doing voiceover work for Ghostbusters: The Video Game, which hit shelves last summer, but he didn’t seem crazy last night about the idea of another Ghostbusters sequel and seemed doubtful whether the long-awaited project would ever get off the ground. “It’s just crazy talk,” he said dismissively.

Watch a portion of the interview below.

Bill Murray Talks Ghostbusters 3 (Spoiler Alert! Mass Hysteria!)

Funny, I was under the impression that Peter Venkman would be very much alive in Ghostbusters 3, but Bill Murray recently told the Daily Mail that the only way he’ll return for Ghostbusters 3—which will be directed by franchise veteran Ivan Reitman—is if he gets to appear as a ghost. This seemingly confirms earlier rumors that Venkman would be killed off in the highly anticipated sequel, which will reportedly team the original Ghostbusters with younger rookies.

“I said to them, ‘I’ll do it if you kill me off in the first reel,’” Murray told the newspaper. “So now they are going to have me as a ghost in the film.”

I’m really not sure how to take this news. To quote Dr. Venkman, “I feel so funky.”

(via /Film)

Confirmed: Ivan Reitman to Direct Ghostbusters 3

Surprised? You shouldn’t be. At the National Board of Review red carpet in New York City, Ivan Reitman—who directed the original Ghostbusters and its much-maligned sequel—told MTV News that he will be returning to the director’s chair for the third installment.

He also confirmed that the writing team of Lee Eisenberg and Gene Stupnitsky (The Office) has submitted the first draft of a script.

“They have delivered a draft,” Reitman told MTV’s Josh Horowitz. “We are working our way through another draft... good work is being done and all of us have our fingers crossed.”

And so do we. But keep those expectations tempered, people. Yes, Reitman is on board, and yes, the original cast is returning, but let’s not forget that Eisenberg and Stupnitsky also lent their pens to Year One, that now-forgotten and universally panned 2009 historical comedy co-written and directed by Dr. Egon Spengler himself, Harold Ramis. Uh oh.

Reitman hinted that Ghostbusters 3 might begin shooting this year.