Bill Murray Confirms Ghostbusters: Afterlife Role And Reveals Some Details
Speaking to Vanity Fair, Murray not only confirmed he will reprise his role as Peter Venkman in the film--alongside his fellow surviving Ghostbusters Dan Aykroyd and Ernie Hudson--but gave some details about the movie's story. "Well, we are a man down. That’s the deal," he explained. "And that's the story that we’re telling, that's the story they've written."
That man down is obviously Harold Ramis, who portrayed Egon Spengler in the first two films. Ramis passed away in 2014, leaving the Ghostbusters without its scientific genius. While it hasn't been confirmed, fans have speculated that the family introduced in the new film will be Egon's next of kin.
The Leftovers alum Carrie Coon plays a single mom named Callie, while Stranger Things star Finn Wolfhard and Captain Marvel standout McKenna Grace play her kids Trevor and Phoebe. In images seen in the Vanity Fair story, Grace can be seen with one of the Ghostbusters' trademark proton packs strapped to her back.
After the family moves to an old farmhouse in Oklahoma, strange occurrences start happening. As Vanity Fair reveals, an old mine outside of town bears the name Ivo Shandor, which is a connection to the original film and the 2009 video game. In 1984's Ghostbusters, Shandor is mentioned as the designer of the building Gozer rises from. In the game, Shandor serves as the primary villain and leader of the Cult of Gozer. While there's no confirmation, it sure does sound like Gozer will figure into the new movie.
At the core, though, Murray says it's not the ghosts or callbacks to previous films that will make Afterlife stand out. "The script is good. It's got lots of emotion in it. It's got lots of family in it, with through lines that are really interesting," he said.
As for Jason Reitman, son of original film director Ivan Reitman and co-writer and director of Afterlife, he wanted to make a movie that appealed to Ghostbusters fans, old and new. "I wanted to make a movie about finding a proton pack in an old barn and the thrill of actually putting it on for the first time," he explained.
With a new cast, as well as the returns of Murray, Aykroyd, Hudson, Sigourney Weaver, and Annie Potts to the roles they made famous, he might just pull it off.
Ghostbusters: Afterlife is in theaters on July 10.