The success of the recent release ofGhostbusters: Afterlifein theaters might have some fans wondering what exactly went wrong with the previous reboot, dubbedGhostbusters: Answer the Call, that was released in 2016. Directed by Paul Feig, that movie served as a fresh reboot by restarting the story from scratch, ignoring the originalGhostbustersmovies from director Ivan Reitman. It reimagined its four leads with Melissa McCarthy, Kate McKinnon, Leslie Jones, and Kristen Wiig.
Unfortunately, fans were sending the message long before the movie was even released that it wasn’t going to be accepted with open arms. Its trailer alone drew an immense amount of criticism, setting a record for the most disliked movie trailer on YouTube. WhileGhostbusters: Answer the Calldoes have its supporters who feel the standalone title still has its place in the series, it’s safe to say that most longtimeGhostbustersfans did not get on board.
Franchise star Ernie Hudson recently weighed in on whyGhostbusters: Afterlifeis doing so well whileAnswer the Callhad left so many people feeling disappointed. Hudson, who had a brief cameo as an original character in the remake, considers himself a fan of that movie and its cast, feeling that the issue wasn’t with its new stars. The big problem, as Hudson points out, was that Paul Feig’s story shelved the original movies' continuity completely after fans had been calling forGhostbusters 3for years. Right away, this convinced many fans not to even give it a chance.
“I’m a big fan of Paul and the four women, they’re all very funny people — but I felt they put themselves in a bind because they didn’t make it part of theGhostbustersuniverse. I think Paul wanted to do his thing and the fans sawGhostbustersin a very specific way. I think Jason took that into account in the new movie. It would’ve been easier if they hadn’t done a reboot."
Going a step further, Hudson also imagines thatGhostbusters: Answer the Callwould have been better-received with fans if it was more of a legacy sequel that connected to the originals, as is the case withAfterlife. Hudson even pitches that the new characters could have served as the daughters of the previous Ghostbusters, an idea not too far removed fromAfterlife’s plot with the Spengler family. Maybe by making it a reboot, Paul Feig was dooming his movie from the start, even if some fans, andErnie Hudsonhimself, can still appreciateAnswer the Callfor what it was.
“If it had been 20 years later and these were our daughters, that would’ve tied it in better, but when you do a reboot, you’re forcing a comparison. It would’ve been much funnier if they had fresh material and could do their own thing. I enjoyed it, even though I felt it was standalone and wasn’t really part of thatGhostbustersuniverse.”
Ghostbusters: Afterlifeis now playing exclusively in movie theaters. The legacy sequel brings back Ernie Hudson along with several other stars of the original movies and he also says in the new interview he’s hopeful to seeWinston mentor the new castin a sequel. You can check out the full interview with Ernie Hudson atYahoo.
