When there's something strange in the neighborhood, who ya gonna call? Well, you call director Jason Reitman, who is bringing us the third Ghostbusters movie in the form of Ghostbusters: Afterlife, which hits theaters on November 19 this year.
The second official trailer was released just a few months ago and looks to be a promising follow-up to the first two movies released in 1984 and 1989, while revealing plenty (but not too much) about the new movie. Fans have been waiting a long time for a third movie, and while a third Ghostbusters movie did arrive in 2016, it was a reboot and one that was met with some very harsh criticism (rightly so). Now, that movie has become nothing more than a bad memory for fans (though it did do wonders for the franchise from a merchandising perspective).
With Ghostbusters: Afterlife just around the corner, fans are salivating at the mouths like Slimer at a hotdog stand. Well, if you need your appetite quenching, then you'll be thrilled to know that Sony Pictures has released two official posters for the upcoming film, which may have escaped from the studio's Ecto-containment Unit for all we know. And these two posters alone suggest that the movie is set to be far superior to the reboot. Check them out below:
While set for a November release, the first poster captures the 'spirit' of summer, which makes sense considering it's set in a town called Summerville. And as you can see, we get our first look at the new team of Ghostbusters - Phoebe Spengler, Trevor Spengler, Lucky, and Podcast, who are played by McKenna Grace, Finn Wolfhard, Celeste O'Conner, and Logan Kim, respectively. Paul Rudd's Mr. Grooberson also features and is holding a ghost trap, although it remains to be seen whether he'll cross the streams with the others, or if he's doomed to be turned into the Keymaster, as suggested in the latest trailer.
Hasbro has also released a number of toys that depict all four children characters in Ghostbusters costumes, as well as Peter Venkman, Ray Stantz, and Winston Zeddemore. No other characters have been released in toy form as yet, but you can buy a number of ghosts, including the new Slimer-like spook Muncher, who appears in both of the main trailers. As for whether he will become a part of the gang, just like Slimer did in the animated series The Real Ghostbusters, it remains to be seen. But as we get glimpses of the kids chasing him through town in the Ecto-1, it's unlikely.
As the second poster suggests, we can also expect skybeams and ethereal ghostly tendrils. It's the same gang again, except this time they're joined by Carrie Coon's Cally, mother to Phoebe and Trevor, and daughter to Egon Spengler. The Ecto-1 might be looking a little rusty, but this is nothing new, as there's plenty of footage of it in the two trailers, and we also know it's been sitting under a tarp in an old barn for Gozer-knows-how-long. Nevertheless, it looks ready for action all the same, and its lights really give this poster as much energy that's needed to keep the Ecto-Containment Unit functioning.
Both of these posters also confirm that the movie will have a 'family' appeal, as it's one of the core themes of the movie, which director Jason Reitman has previously confirmed. And it's fair to say that we can also expect a perfect blend of comedy and horror, something the first two movies balanced incredibly well. But these two posters aren't the first ones we've had - the original one teased the return of the Ecto-1, as it tore through the crops of a cornfield against a dark green sky.
Ghostbusters: Afterlife abandons the traditional New York setting in exchange for more rural surroundings in the form of Summerville, Oklahoma, where, needless to say, something strange is going on. The late Egon Spengler (played by the late Harold Ramis) has left behind a creepy old farmhouse to his daughter and grandchildren, but just like the town of Summerville, the house has some secrets of its own. In its basement and barn are the original Ghostbusters' equipment: the proton packs, PKE meters, ecto-goggles, the Ecto-1, and, of course, spores, molds, and fungus.
Meanwhile, the backwater town is plagued by mysterious earthquakes and ghostly apparitions, and the answer to these supernatural occurrences appears to be underground in the town's mines, in the form of a Gozer temple. And if that's not enough to convince you that the Sumerian demigod with the flat-top is due to make a comeback, check out the trailer again, which is bursting at the seams with references to the original movie, and includes returning villains such as the StayPuft Marshmallow Man and the Terror Dogs (there's even an Astral Terror Dog known as the Sentinel!).
But it's not just the villains who are making a comeback - the film will also see the return of original characters such as Ghostbusters, as well as equally beloved characters Janine Melnitz (Annie Potts) and Dana Barrett (Sigourney Weaver). Ray Stantz (Dan Aykroyd) and Janine are teased in the trailer, while we also get a voiceover from Peter Venkman (Bill Murray) in the second trailer and Egon Spengler in the latest. As for Winston Zeddemore (Ernie Hudson), we do see a black-and-white picture of him with the rest of the team in the new trailer, but so far, there has been no official cameo.
With the film now just several weeks away from release, it's unlikely we'll get another trailer - which isn't a bad thing, considering trailers often spoil the films they're designed to sell. Besides, we've now had four trailers so far, and now three official posters. What more could we possibly want? If November is still too long a wait, though, you can always kill time playing the critically acclaimed Ghostbusters: The Video Game, which has been touted as an official Ghostbusters 3, and is also canon to the first two movies.
Ghostbusters: Afterlife will release in theaters on November 19. Even after delays due to COVID-19, the film was recently postponed again from its November 11 release.
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