Dan Aykroyd Gives Some Clues To New Ghostbusters, And Reveals Plans for Another Sequel Already in the Works (Video Added)
Everyone who loves movies has been buzzing about Ghostbusters 3 for years. Rumors about a third incarnation of the mega-hit (Bill Murray was in, then he was out and so on) have been around since Ghostbusters 2 wrapped, but until late last summer, it was all just speculation. Then in August it was reported that Paul Feig was in talks to write Ghostbusters 3, possibly with women cast in the lead roles. Feig confirmed that he was working on a script for an all-female Ghostbusters 3 a few months later via Twitter.
Dan Aykroyd sat down this week at the SiriusXM studios for an episode of “Unmasked with Ron Bennington” and shared a few more details.
He told the live Unmasked audience that the new”Ghostbusters” film will be a total reboot. He said, “…it’s as if the first two movies don’t exist and as if this is a whole parallel reality where for the first time the Ghostbusters exist and they’re women in this environment that’s a lot different than the first two.”
Dan gave his blessing to Feig’s script, and sounded pleased with the changes made to the original storyline. “I can tell you, as the originator,” Dan said “I’m very happy with what he’s done. It’s very tasteful. And it needed a reworking. The thing needed a new engine. You know? It needed new exhaust. It needed new steering. And this is what we’re getting.” Even with the “rework” getting his approval, Dan Aykroyd is devoted to keeping the spirit of the original “Ghostbusters” and he’ll be making his own contributions to what he calls,”…a great great script from Paul Feig which we will work on and make better.”
One of the reworks of the third installment is the female star power, and Aykroyd said he is very happy with the casting. “The real reality in fact of the third movie with this tremendous cast of women, Melissa McCarthy, Kate McKinnon, Leslie Jones and Kristen Wiig. . . I’ve got three daughters, so I’m all for female empowerment.” He added that he appreciated Feig’s ability to create over the top comedy with strong female characters. “[Feig] establishes the voices beautifully in these characters. Now of course, he’s got masters playing the roles for him, so this is going to really work in our favor for the third movie.”
Getting a new “Ghostbusters” film in production is something that Dan Aykroyd has been working for years to make happen. He talked about potential for more Ghostbuster films, including possible sequels to the original franchise. He said, “Oh I’ve written… well, we have…I’ve written, well, there’s three drafts of the old concept that exists. And we’re going to be able to salvage some of it and use it. Yeah, we’re gonna be able to use it some day. Let’s get this one made and that will reinvigorate the franchise and then we’ll go on to maybe doing a more conventional third sequel as we were planning and another idea I have for it.”
Dan Aykroyd also talked about his early plans for the original Ghostbusters film, which changed when he learned of the death of his comedy partner and SNL castmate John Belushi. “I was writing it for John, Eddie Murphy and myself. Yeah. And then I got the word that John had died and that day I was writing a line for him when I got the call. And now, of course many years later, we have the two first movies, we have a Lego toy set, we have Mattel toys. So if you want your Ghostbusters fix, it’s out there. DVDs, the movies, we have games, video games, we have lots of toys.”
The new “Ghostbusters” will be directed by Paul Feig (The Heat, Spy, Bridesmaids) and he along with Dan Aykroyd and Katie Dippold (Parks and Recreation, MADtv) are currently working on the script. The movie starring Kristen Wiig, Melissa McCarthy, Kate McKinnon and Leslie Jones is expected to start shooting in New York City this Summer.
You can hear the premiere of the full hour of Dan Aykroyd on Unmasked on SiriusXM’s Ron and Fez Show Friday, February 20th at 2pm et on Raw Dog Channel 99. Unmasked will re-air on Saturday, February 21st at 7pm et and on Sunday, February 22nd at 2pm et and 10pm et. Unmasked will also air on OpieRadio Channel, Sirius 206 XM 103 on Friday at 11pm et and again on Sunday on OpieRadio at 11am et.
