The Gilded Age star Carrie Coon excels in the New York-set drama, but she also joined another franchise famous for its connection to the Big Apple. Over the summer, Coon starred in the hugely successful Ghostbusters: Afterlife, playing Callie Spengler — the daughter of the late Harold Ramis’ Dr. Egon Spengler. In an exclusive interview with PopCulture.com, Coon said she would love to get the call to return for a sequel.
“Sure,” Coon said when asked if she would be interested in making another Ghostbusters movie. “Hey look who are you going to call? Hopefully me. I’m looking forward to the possibility. It seems like the movie did pretty well and we got to hurry up and make one before the kids are 30… and I’m grandma. So I’m ready when they are.”
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Afterlife was packed to the brim with references from the first two Ghostbusters movies and introduced a new generation of younger ghost hunters, headlined by Finn Wolfhard’s Trevor Spengler and McKenna Grace as Phoebe Spengler. After being postponed due to the coronavirus pandemic, it hit theaters in November 2021 and was a smash hit, grossing over $195 million. Since it even ended with a post-credits scene hinting at more to come, a sequel seems like a foregone conclusion. However, Sony still hasn’t greenlit one just yet.
While she waits to get the call for another Ghostbusters movie, Coon is now working on The Gilded Age, a new HBO costume drama from Downton Abbey creator Julian Fellowes. Coon plays Bertha Russell, who is anxious to get a place in polite society, which has been closed off to her and her husband George because they are considered “new money.” Morgan Spector plays George, while Taissa Farmiga stars as their daughter Gladys.
The Russells start off as the outsiders on the show, trying to interrupt the status quo that their neighbors hold dear. “They’re the interlopers and that’s always fun,” Coon told PopCulture. “I mean, don’t we all feel like outsiders, at least when we’re teenagers? It’s a feeling I think everybody can relate to. And it’s also a source of dynamism in the plot.”
While Bertha is trying to break into society, George is trying to shake up New York’s business world by dominating the railroad industry.”I think there is something just innately pleasurable about having characters who are both outsiders… but actually also have a tremendous amount of power,” Spector said. “So it’s a way to have it. It’s kind of both ways that can only really happen in a fiction, which is nice.”
The Gilded Age premieres on HBO Monday, Jan. 24 at 9 p.m. ET. Episodes are also released on HBO Max after they air.
