We hope you ain’t ‘fraid of no ghosts, because there are a ton of new Ghostbusters projects coming your way. Not only is there a live action sequel to 2021’s Ghostbusters: Afterlife, there’s a Netflix cartoon series and a Sony animated movie featuring yet more all-new characters.
The various announcements came on June 8, the anniversary of the original film’s release in 1984 — so of course it’s been named Ghostbusters Day. Although we don’t know anything about the film’s new take on the franchise, it will be directed by Jennifer Kluska (director of Hotel Transylvania: Transformania) and Chris Prynoski (a producer on Big mouth, Star Trek: Lower Decks, The Legend of Vox Machina and The Boys: Diabolical). It’s being written by Brenda Hsueh, a writer and producer on How I Met Your Mother, Mr Corman and Melissa & Joey.
This week is also Netflix’s Geeked Week of teasers and announcements, and the streaming service revealed a new Ghostbusters animated series being developed by Afterlife writers Jason Reitman and Gil Kenan.
Those busy chaps are also working on a live action Afterlife sequel under the working title “Firehouse”, which moves the action to New York. Afterlife starred McKenna Grace, Finn Wolfhard, Carrie Coon and Paul Rudd alongside original stars Bill Murray, Dan Aykroyd and Ernie Hudson (with a CG version of the late Harold Ramis).
This isn’t the first time Ghostbusters has received the animated treatment. When the original film dropped in 1984, it spawned The Real Ghostbusters, a cartoon spinoff featuring the famous foursome of Peter Venkman, Egon Spengler, Ray Stantz and Winston Zeddemore. Slimer and Janine also had starring roles in the series, which ran from 1986-1991 and was followed by Extreme Ghostbusters in 1997. Though these popular series’ skewed toward kids, there’s no word on whether the Netflix version will be family-friendly or for an older audience.
The late Ivan Reitman directed the first two Ghostbusters films and passed the baton to his son for Ghostbusters: Afterlife while serving as a producer. Jason Reitman is keeping the stories alive and posted a thank you message Wednesday to fans for their support and to tell everyone, “Happy Ghostbusters Day.”
Reitman also urged viewers to check social media for more Ghostbusters announcements. “We have a lot of secrets and we’re going to share a few of them with you today,” he said. “So, keep an eye on socials and definitely check out tonight. We have something really special we want to share with you.” With a Ghostbusters: Afterlife sequel in the works and the Netflix show, fans may see the revived franchise expand even more.
