Ghostbusters star Dan Aykroyd reportedly spilled details of the upcoming sequel months ago, according to an uncovered 2018 interview.
Geek Tyrant reports that the Ray Stantz actor was talking about a Ghostbusters sequel a few months back, dishing that it was currently being written.
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“I think we have a story that’s going to work and it’s being written right now by really good filmmakers. I can’t say their names,” Aykroyd said. “They’re a good team and they are making an effort to bring back all the emotion and spirit of the first two movies and then take it into the 21st century with a vernacular that’s needed today to get it across.”
There has been speculation on whether or not the original Ghostbusters would return in the sequel, but the past interview with Aykroyd quotes him as saying, “There is a possibility of a reunion with the three remaining Ghostbusters… It’s being written right now.”
Sadly, Harold Ramis, who played Egon Spengler — and also co-wrote the films with Aykroyd — passed away in 2014.
Aykroyd seemed confident that he and Ernie Hudson — who played Winston Zeddemore — would return, and that they may be able to get Bill Murray (Peter Venkman) back in some capacity as well. “I think Billy will come. The story’s so good. Even if he plays a ghost,” Aykroyd said.
The original Ghostbusters films were directed by Ivan Reitman, and it is his son Jason (Juno, Up in the Air) who is co-writing and directing the new sequel.
Regarding why the project and details of it have been kept so private, Jason explained to EW, “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 filmmaker went on to gush about how has always been a hug fan of the franchise, and expressed his excitement over getting to create the next chapter.
“I love everything about it. The iconography. The music. The tone. I remember being on set and seeing them try out the card catalog gag for the first time when the library ghost makes them come flying out. I remember the day they killed Stay Puft and I brought home a hardened piece of foam that just sat on a shelf for years,” Reitman recalled. “I was scared there was a terror dog underneath my bed before people knew what a terror dog was.”
“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. This is the next chapter in the original franchise,” he added. “It is not a reboot. What happened in the ’80s happened in the ’80s, and this is set in the present day.”
