Jason Reitman on Original Cast in ‘Ghostbusters: Afterlife’: ‘It’s Like Seeing Superheroes’
Ghostbusters: Afterlife is about a month away from its highly-anticipated release, and it sounds like it’s going to be an emotional affair for fans of the franchise.
The film is directed by Jason Reitman, the son of Ivan Reitman who directed Ghostbusters and Ghostbusters II and serves as a producer on this latest Ghostbusters film. Of course, Ivan isn’t the only part of the original films returning as a number of the original cast members are also in the film including Bill Murray, Dan Aykroyd, Ernie Hudson, Annie Potts and Sigourney Weaver.
Jason Reitman said in an interview with Empire Magazine (as transcribed by MovieWeb.com), “I don’t think I was prepared for what it would feel like when the original guys walk on set in their flight suits. It’s like seeing superheroes. And it feels very special.”
Jason adds, “It’s also very intimidating. And it is an immediate reminder of what we were so presumptuous to attempt, which is to make another film that is a chapter in this larger story. It’s one thing to direct all new characters, because at that point, you can almost say that you’re making fan fiction. When Bill and Ernie and Dan walk in wearing flight suits, it becomes very real, very quickly. This is a ‘Ghostbusters’ movie.”
Ivan Reitman noted, “When certain people started showing up from the world of the ’84 film, it was startling for me. Just to see everybody older but still be there. Seeing them step on set in character was really thrilling. And to hear Venkman speak as Venkman, in a way that we haven’t heard in such a long time, that’s going to be one of the joys of the movie.”
As previously reported, the film’s central plot is based around a single mother and her two children who are the daughter and grandchildren of Dr. Egon Spengler, who was played by the late Harold Ramis.
Ghostbusters: Afterlife opens in theaters on November 19. The film’s trailer can be viewed below.
Ghostbusters: Afterlife – Still Images
