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Ghostbusters III was the unofficial title of the proposed third Ghostbusters movie that was never made. It went through several revisions and writing teams over a period of about 25 years. It was not greenlit and instead a reboot Ghostbusters movie became the focus starting in Fall 2014.[1] Sony confirmed through Twitter as well.[2] Work continued on a possible third film script; but a script by Jason Reitman and Gil Kenan was greenlit instead, and Ghostbusters: Afterlife was released on November 19, 2021.

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Known Movie Scripts

Development

Hellbent

See Ghostbusters III: Hellbent.

Eisenberg-Stupnitsky Rewrite

In 2008, a possible script was being written by Lee Eisenberg and Gene Stupnitsky who both wrote "Year One" a comedy that was directed by Harold Ramis.[4][5]

By September 2008, Dan Aykroyd, Harold Ramis, and Ivan Reitman were only consulting. In early 2009, Judd Apatow reportedly signed on to produce.[6][7]

In February 2009, Dan Aykroyd revealed "the script is commenced early summer in June. Hope to be in production by late fall 2009".[8][9]

On March 3, 2009, Sony debunked Judd Apatow's involvement in the movie. Claims of a production listing with him credited as a producer were concluded to be faked.[10]

By October 16, 2010, Aykroyd was doing a pass on the script. He had Eliza Dushku, Anna Faris, and Bill Hader in mind for the cast but Sony would not greenlight it without Murray.[11]

Around 2009-2010, Rick Moranis was approached by an associate of Akyroyd and asked if he would work on a third movie.[12] In total, Ivan Reitman, Dan Aykroyd and Harold Ramis helped them with the script.[13] There were three completely drafts written over a period of 4-5 years. [14]

On February 18, 2009, Aykroyd stated the script was still being worked on and that they "hope to be in production by late fall 2009".[15]

As of June 19, 2009 and later September 30th, 2009, Harold Ramis confirmed the movie is not in production, and there's still no clue who is going to play the new Ghostbusters; however he also confirmed all four actors that played the original Ghostbusters have agreed to be part of the new project. Sony is also very interested in it. [16][17]

In an interview with IGN regarding 2009's Ghostbusters: The Video Game, Dan Aykroyd mentioned that he thinks the game will be touched upon in the new movie. Primarily expanding on the notion in the game that they need new rookies and that the writers for the new movie have been playing and following the development of the game. And he expects the writers will draw off some elements from it. He sites at the time of the interview that the first draft of the third movies script is currently in the works.[18]

On December 28, 2009, Ramis stated the plan was progressing shoot next summer and release in 2011.[19]

In an interview with Breakfast Television Vancouver on September 23, 2010, Dan Aykroyd said the following: [20]

  • Hope to be in business in Spring (2011)
  • The hold up was not Bill Murray, it was a matter of our schedules being open
  • We need younger people to carry the packs and drive the Cadillac
  • Mentions Ray Stantz has issues with his eye, knee, and hip as well as fitting into the jumpsuit.
  • It's about passing the torch to a younger and stronger generation
  • There will be a stronger threat, especially since we're coming out the Kali Yuga [21] into a post-2012 apocalyptic cataclysm
  • When asked about casting, Aykroyd answered he has people in mind
  • They want a young woman in her early 20s and three young men in their early 20s

On August 25, 2011, during an interview with Dennis Miller Radio, Dan Aykroyd stated he hopes to go into production in Spring (2012).[22]

On November 13, 2011, during an interview with Michelle Miller on CBS Sunday Morning to promote his Crystal Head Vodka, Dan Aykroyd stated the script is being refined.[23] [24]

On December 4, 2012, Dan Aykroyd confirmed he and Ivan Reitman have worked on every draft in the past three years. [25]

On April 23, 2013, for the second draft, Dan Aykroyd revealed he completely rewrote the script and included the part he wrote for Bill Murray.[26] The screen play was very Bill Murray-centric but Ivan Reitman recalled during a conversation with Murray during a Toronto Film Festival that Murray was into small roles and was no longer interested in leading roles.[27]

On January 16, 2020, in an interview, Lee Eisenberg confirmed he and Stupnitsky worked on Ghostbusters for four years and at one point, the movie was greenlit but contingent on Bill Murray doing it.[28]

Cohen Rewrite

On June 6, 2012, during interview on The Late Show with David Letterman, Bill Murray commented, "It's got to be really funny and that first one was so darn funny, it's hard for me... I think we'll try again. I always drag my feet on it, but I think..." [29]

On June 30, 2012, Dan Aykroyd mentioned, "new writing staff working on it [the script] now... it's got to be perfect. That's the whole thing. There's no point in doing it unless it's perfect." [30]

On July 10, 2012, it was revealed Etan Cohen has been hired to rewrite the script. [31]

On September 10, 2012, while at the Toronto Film Festival, Bill Murray commented, "We'll see. There's another script in process. We'll see if it's good. It's got to be really good y'know because the first one was so great." [32]

On September 22, 2012, at a Crystal Head Vodka signing event in Ottawa, Ontario, Dan Aykroyd revealed he has seen some pages of the new script and did a few changes. He also hinted filming might be done in Canada and when the time comes he would call on the fan community to come to the sets. [33]

On December 4, 2012, Dan Aykroyd revealed Ivan Reitman has been strongly collaborating with Etan Cohen. Aykroyd also worked on revisions when needed. [34]

By December 30 2012, in the first draft, Peter was not in the story. The omission was Akyroyd's request but Sony was hesitant about it.[35]

On March 5, 2013, Dan Aykroyd revealed he's was going to look at some pages of the script by Cohen in the next couple of weeks. Aykroyd reiterated Bill Murray has shown interest in reading a script and there will always be a place for him in the movie. [36]

On April 12, 2013, Dan Aykroyd said "we've got sixty pages" and then went on to confirm once more that Ivan Reitman is on board with the third movie. [37]

On April 23, 2013, Dan Aykroyd revealed half of the screenplay is be completed very soon. Aykroyd thinks the movie should be in production by the fall and be shooting by the new year. [38] On May 13, 2013, Dan Aykroyd revealed he would be meeting with Ivan Reitman on June 7 in Cleveland to discuss the script. [39]

In January 2014, after several drafts, the new Ghostbusters team consisted of: Chris, a kindhearted scholar; Jeremy, Chris's cynical friend who loves debunking ghost stories; Dean, the son of Ray Stantz who now licensed the Ghostbusters name to a theme restaurant; and Anna, who has a romance with Chris that stalls because she doesn't like to date coworkers. The main villain was Gniewko and the recurring threat were "hellions" controlling people and animals. Ray Stantz and Egon Spengler had cameos as ghosts. Dana Barrett, Louis Tully and his wife, the Stay Puft Marshmallow Man, and Peter Venkman had brief appearances. The ending battle featured a giant baby.[40] Doug Belgrad, president of Sony Pictures, and Amy Pascal wanted to forward the Alive Again script to Seth Rogen and Evan Goldberg, believing they would be the game changers the movie needed. Belgrad also thought Rogen would have been perfect for the role of Chris. Adam Pally, Charlie Day, and Jesse Eisenberg were considered for Chris by Ivan Reitman. Jonah Hill was offered Jeremy. Emma Stone was offered Anna. Brie Larson and Anne Hathaway were Reitman's choices for Anna. He met with both and they were both interested. Zach Galifianakis was his choice for Dean, Rebel Wilson, Aubrey Plaza, and Aziz Ansari for other roles, and Sacha Baron Cohen for Gniewko. Pascal wanted Will Ferrell for Gniewko but Reitman didn't think he could play the role seriously.[41] The directors known to have passed on it were Phil Lord and Chris Miller, Paul Feig, and Todd Phillips. Discussions with Brad Bird went nowhere. Judd Apatow, Adam McKay, Jay Roach, Matt Stone and Trey Parker, and Seth McFarlane were on Amy Pascal's list. Ruben Fleischer and Nick Stoller were "maybes" and Jason Bateman was considered. Like Fleischer, another director who emailed Pascal to express interest was Dominique Adams.[42][43]

On March 18, 2014, it was reported Ivan Reitman decided to only return as a Producer in light of the passing of Harold Ramis in February. Reitman said he will work with Sony Pictures Entertainment executive Amy Pascal to find a director for the movie from a short list they are already working on. After they find the director, they will look for the new cast. Reitman hopes to start production in Fall 2014 in New York but felt the beginning of 2015 is more likely. [44] [45]

On April 4, 2014 - The Wrap published an article with a 5:57 video [46] The majority of the video is fancast but Jeff Scneider claims they have an agency breakdown of the main roles:

  • Two are young men who will be aged 23-29
    • Jeremy is the young leader.
    • Chris is the son of Peter Venkman.
  • Female lead is Anna and she has a doctorate. Will be a few years older.
  • Older male named Eean who will likely serve as the film's comic relief.
  • The villain named Eniewko.

On April 7, 2014, it was reported Phil Lord and Chris Miller turned down an offer to direct the movie. [47]

On April 8, 2014, Ivan Reitman noted, "A lot of directors are throwing their hats in. We're starting the meetings. We're going to do it." [48]

On May 30, 2014, Ruben Fleischer was reported to be considered as the director. [49]

On June 4, 2014, in an article celebrating 30 years of Ghostbusters, a studio spokesman speaking for Columbia Pictures president Doug Belgrad stated, "We are currently working hard to re-create the magic of the original in order to bring a new Ghostbusters adventure to life" in response to a Ghostbusters III inquiry. [50]

On July 21, 2014, on the Today show, Dan Aykroyd commented the movie is looking to be in pre-production in spring 2015. [51]

On June 4, 2014, in an article celebrating 30 years of Ghostbusters, snippets of a phone interview with Etan Cohen was included. Cohen confirmed he and Ivan Reitman are "together for hours every week, working on it [the script] really closely" and reaffirmed that Dan Aykroyd is acting as an 'overseeing Ghostbusters writer emeritus.' [52]

On September 1, 2014, Ivan Reitman confirmed the drafts that he supervised always had a very important female presence. [53]

In the featurette "Time Is A But A Window: Ghostbusters II and Beyond" from the September 16, 2014 release Ghostbusters 1 & 2 Gift Set (2014), Dan Aykroyd clarified he had written two "really solid" third movie scripts and a third concept, that Sony signed off on, with the late Harold Ramis. While working on the third concept, Aykroyd admitted he hears Ramis' sensibility and often edits his work with a 'What would Harold do?' He reaffirmed hope that the third movie would deal with passing the torch to a new generation. [54]

On February 18, 2015, Dan Aykroyd, while on Unmasked with Ron Bennington on Sirius XM, stated the three drafts of Ghostbusters III were going to be partly salvaged and used. He hoped the Feig reboot would reinvigorate the franchise and help get a " a more conventional third sequel" and "another idea" made. [55]

On May 31, 2015, Paul Feig confirmed he was approached to direct Ghostbusters III several times but turned it down because he couldn't figure out how to do it and wasn't excited about it. [56]

On June 8, 2016, Ivan Reitman, on KROQ, talked a little about the timeline of Ghostbusters III. About four to five years ago (2011-2012), another attempt to make Ghostbusters III started. A couple of scripts were done. Reitman was going to direct it. Sony immediately greenlit one of the scripts. The script was about passing the torch. At some point in the first 20 pages, Peter Venkman died. Harold Ramis because really sick then passed away in 2014. Reitman didn't think they could pull off a Ghostbusters III without Ramis. At that time, they began to listen to pitches from other directors, including Paul Feig who pitched retelling the movie with an all women team. Reitman wasn't sure if he agreed with it but felt it was a fresh idea. Reitman noted most of the male actors were too frightened to step in the footsteps of the four original Ghostbusters. [57] [58]

Plot

Little of the plot is known. What is known is it will include old and new Ghostbusters. Numerous Ghostbusters cadets would be involved.

Harold Ramis: "I think we are just going to try and make a good movie. The intention of a sequel is not to give an audience more of what they didn't get enough of the first time. It's to give the audience something that is new. We want them to feel that they are having a new experience of some kind. That becomes a tightrope. Yeah, we definitely are introducing new Ghostbusters. That much is for sure. And there will be inter-dimensional creatures visiting New York. And we will deal with it. That's all I am allowed to say at this point." [59]

For awhile, the concept was the Ghostbusters cleaned up New York City of all ghosts and went out out business. The concept then shifted to passing the torch to new Ghostbusters.[60]

At some point in the first 20 pages of at least one of the Eisenberg-Stupnitsky scripts, Peter Venkman died.[61][62] It was the passing of the torch from the original Ghostbusters to a new group led by Dana's son Oscar. Peter's ghost is a very major character. [63] In the most recent draft, Oscar was a postgrad student, weird things start to happen, and Peter dies in the first scene and becomes a ghost. Overall, it was a father-son story.[64]

The new team would be Columbia University students studying and researching particle physics.[65] The Higgs boson, gluons, and mesons from particle theory will provide a scientific base in terms of the storytelling, "to open up to another dimension and have something horrible come through." [66] Modern day anti-matter research and CERN may be a "breeding ground for the paranormal."[67] The dimension Earth resides in, the four planes of existence, length, height, width, and time, become threatened by some of this research being done. Four new Ghostbusters have to solve the problem. Larry King would have a part in the movie talking about paranormal incidents in parts of Manhattan, including Morningside Heights.[68] [69]

The new Ghostbusters would learn how how to use a variety of devices including the 'psychotron and the accelerators' and new stuff such as 'the neuron splitter,' which is going to be the interplaner, and an 'interceptor' -- which would allow them to go from dimension to dimension.[70]

The original Ghostbusters are in a very minor role.[71] The story is focused "more about new people."[72] On March 31, 2014, Ivan Reitman was quoted confirming Ghostbusters III is not a reboot. The story would just focus on new Ghostbusting characters while in contrast, the late Harold Ramis would have had a cameo.[73] Egon was working at the International Institute for Imaginary Science in Geneva. "He's evolved a post-rational, non-conclusive logic for dealing with problems of chaos" but he's "gone so abstract, even he doesn’t know what he’s doing."[citation needed][74]

Tristan Jones worked on previsualization.[75] [76] [77] In a ghost montage scene, Jones drew an entity called the "Meat Bull" Ghost. It originated from a mounted skull on the wall of a steak joint that came to life. The idea was all the meat and Ectoplasm was used to create its body.[78] [79]

In all the scripts read by Paul Feig, the core of the story was a new team comes together, the original team was forgotten, they give the equipment to the new team and train them.[80]

The ending would organically feed into a fourth movie. The fifth or sixth would involve the Man-Hell-ttan concept from the Hellbent script.[81]

Crew

Script Writers

  • Etan Cohen
    • Previously Confirmed (July 10, 2012)[82]
  • Lee Eisenberg & Gene Stupnitsky

Director

Producer

Cast

Actors

See Also

Other Pitches

Trivia

  • In the Crew and Filmmakers section of special features in the 1998 Collector's Edition DVD of The Blues Brothers, Dan Aykroyd's filmography section lists Ghostbusters III as a 1998 release.
  • The script for Ghostbusters: The Video Game was not based on any drafts of the third movie.[101][102] Internally, the Terminal Reality development team wanted the game to be Ghostbusters III. Aykroyd and Ramis considered it to be the third film. There was a logo made. Sony Pictures wouldn't allow it. At the time, they didn't want that tied to a game.[103]
  • Around 2010, Rhett Reese and Paul Wernick wrote a draft of Zombieland 2 that had a scene that took place on a golf course where Bill Murray was playing golf with Dan Aykroyd, Ernie Hudson, and Harold Ramis. Aykroyd, Ramis, and Hudson were trying to convince Murray to be in Ghostbusters III and he was reluctant. Murray was already annoyed because the group ahead of them were playing slowly and it turned out Joe Pesci was in that group. Murray hits the drive towards Joe Pesci and gets him mad.[104]

References

  1. The Hollywood Reporter 10/8/14
  2. Sony Tweet 10/8/14
  3. New York Times "New Video Game? Who You Gonna Call?" 5/28/2009 Article reads: "Mr. Aykroyd was immediately eager to start on a third film, but his first three drafts of a screenplay failed to excite either Mr. Reitman or Mr. Ramis, not to mention the elusive Mr. Murray. From that point the series basically languished for 15 years."
  4. Variety 2008
  5. Aykroyd on E! 9/3/2008
  6. Greene, James, Jr., (2022). A Convenient Parallel Dimension: How Ghostbusters Slimed Us Forever, p. 184-185. Lyons Press, Essex, CT USA, ISBN 9781493048243. Line reads: "Ramis detailed this in a September 2008 email to Chicago Tribune writer Mark Caro that also scraped together what few facts there were about this third installment. "Aykroyd, Ivan Reitman, and I are consulting at this point, and according to Dan, Bill Murray is willing to be involved on some level." Per storyline, all Ramis could say was "the old ghostbusters would appear in the film in some mentor capacity." That same month, Bill Murray fielded a question about Ghostbusters III during a festival screening of his latest movie, City of Embers. Asked about "the possibility of strapping on another proton pack and kicking some ghost ass," the actor joked, "Well, I think the wounds from Ghostbusters II have healed." Murray was more straightforward during a chat with the Birmingham Mail."
  7. Greene, James, Jr., (2022). A Convenient Parallel Dimension: How Ghostbusters Slimed Us Forever, p. 185. Lyons Press, Essex, CT USA, ISBN 9781493048243. Line reads: "Apatow signed on to produce Ghostbusters III in early 2009, and there were hopes the cameras would roll later that year."
  8. Boston 2/2009
  9. WBCN interview
  10. Screen Rant "Ghostbusters 3 Is Apatow-Free" 3/3/2009
  11. Greene, James, Jr., (2022). A Convenient Parallel Dimension: How Ghostbusters Slimed Us Forever, p. 188. Lyons Press, Essex, CT USA, ISBN 9781493048243. Line reads: "Aykroyd was taking a pass at the script and wanted Buffy the Vampire Slayer and Dollhouse actress Eliza Dushku to play a part. A month later, Aykroyd announced casting was under way. Fearless comedienne Anna Faris and genial goof Bill Hader were two more "fresh faces" he thought were "strong possibilities." Of course, there remained a mitigating factor to all this pillow talk. Without Murray, the studio absolutely will not make the film," stated a January 2011 report from Deadline."
  12. Heeb Magazine "You Don't Do Liner Notes With The Dead Sea Scrolls": Rick Moranis In Conversation 6/23/13
  13. Deadline Ivan Reitman 3/18/14
  14. Gene Stupnitsky Tweet 11/18/14
  15. Boston Chat with Dan Aykroyd 2/18/09
  16. Aint it Cool News 6/19/09
  17. Movie Web 9/30/09
  18. IGN YouTube
  19. Heeb Magazine "Ramis on Ghostbusters 3" 12/28/09
  20. Aykroyd on Breakfast Television Vancouver 9/23/2010
  21. Wikipedia article on Kali Yuga
  22. Dennis Miller Radio, 53 second mark, 8/25/11
  23. Dan Aykroyd's high spirits page 2
  24. Ghostbusters News Clip 7:30-7:45
  25. Esquire Dan Aykroyd Interview 12/4/12
  26. ABC News Q&A 4/23/13
  27. EW Ivan Reitman interview 3/29/14
  28. The Hollywood Reporter "How 'Little America' Showrunner Lee Eisenberg Cast International Actors Under Trump's Travel Ban" 1/16/2020 Lee Eisenberg says: "We worked on Ghostbusters for four years. It got very close. At one point I think it was greenlit, contingent on Bill Murray doing it. And then Bill Murray did not do it. Bill Murray I don't think read it."
  29. Screen Crush 2:07-2:31 mark, 6/7/12
  30. WIVB 4 News article 6/30/12
  31. Variety article 7/10/12
  32. ET Canada via YouTube at TIFF, 2:00-2:08, 9/10/12
  33. The Ghostbusters Podcast YouTube account, "Dan Aykroyd Interview", 9/23/12
  34. Esquire Dan Aykroyd Interview 12/4/12
  35. Greene, James, Jr., (2022). A Convenient Parallel Dimension: How Ghostbusters Slimed Us Forever, p. 191. Lyons Press, Essex, CT USA, ISBN 9781493048243. Line reads: "By December, Cohen had a Ghostbusters III draft that looked good to Aykroyd—one that omitted Murray entirely by Aykroyd's request—but the studio was hesitant."
  36. Clip of 3/5/13 George George Stroumboulopoulos Tonight episode via Ghostbusters News, 1:27 to 2:27 mark
  37. Youtube video: Paparazzi XPosed-Dan Aykroyd walking on streets of Manhattan in New York and talks about Ghostbusters Movie
  38. ABC News Q&A 4/23/13
  39. Short List 5/13/13
  40. Greene, James, Jr., (2022). A Convenient Parallel Dimension: How Ghostbusters Slimed Us Forever, p. 191. Lyons Press, Essex, CT USA, ISBN 9781493048243. Line reads: "Sony Pictures chairperson Amy Pascal had her concerns with Etan Cohen's Ghostbusters III script, titled Ghostbusters: Alive Again. It was January 2014 and Cohen had already authored several drafts. Alive Again revolved around a group of new Ghostbusters including Chris, a kindhearted scholar; Jeremy, Chris's cynical friend who loves debunking ghost stories; Dean, the son of original Ghostbuster Ray Stantz who now licensed the Ghostbusters name to a theme restaurant; and Anna, who has a romance with Chris that stalls because she doesn't like to date coworkers. The primary antagonist is called Gniewko and there are many instances of "hellions" controlling people and animals. Ray Stantz and Egon Spengler were given cameos—as ghosts. Alive Again also had brief appearances from Dana Barrett, Louis Tully and his wife, the Stay Puft Marshmallow Man, and Peter Venkman. The ending battle featured a giant baby."
  41. Greene, James, Jr., (2022). A Convenient Parallel Dimension: How Ghostbusters Slimed Us Forever, p. 193. Lyons Press, Essex, CT USA, ISBN 9781493048243. Line reads: "Belgrad and Pascal both wanted to forward the script to Seth Rogen and Evan Goldberg. "We've always believed that Seth/Evan producing with Ivan is a game changer," Belgrad wrote. "And I think Seth would be an awesome Chris." The shaky script didn't stop the studio or the filmmakers from trying to assemble a dream cast for Alive Again. Two months earlier, the part of Jeremy was offered to Jonah Hill, who had garnered acclaim costarring in Rogen's Superbad; Hill passed. Emma Stone, another Superbad alum, was offered the Anna role at the same time but her response wasn't recorded. Ivan Reitman thought either Brie Larson or Anne Hathaway would be right for Anna. "I have met with both," he told Sony, "and both have expressed a strong desire to do it." Adam Pally, Charlie Day, and Jesse Eisenberg were the actors Reitman was considering for Chris. Kaufman-esque funny-man Zach Galifianakis was his choice to play Dean, and there were other parts he thought could go to Rebel Wilson, Aubrey Plaza, and Aziz Ansari. For Gniewko, Reitman pictured Borat star Sacha Baron Cohen. Pascal wanted Will Ferrell in that role, but Reitman didn't think Ferrell could play it seriously enough."
  42. Greene, James, Jr., (2022). A Convenient Parallel Dimension: How Ghostbusters Slimed Us Forever, p. 197-198. Lyons Press, Essex, CT USA, ISBN 9781493048243. Line reads: "Directors of all stripes were barraging Sony Pictures chairperson Amy Pascal, falling all over themselves for consideration. "Hopefully I am not being inappropriately aggressive," Zombieland's Ruben Fleischer wrote to Pascal in an email, "but I think you know this is my all time dream project and I will do whatever it takes to make this movie for you." Dominique Adams, a rookie filmmaker from Montreal, also emailed Pascal."
  43. Greene, James, Jr., (2022). A Convenient Parallel Dimension: How Ghostbusters Slimed Us Forever, p. 199-200. Lyons Press, Essex, CT USA, ISBN 9781493048243. Line reads: "Feig couldn't see a plausible way to make this story. He turned down Ghostbusters III every time Pascal asked. Sony's hunt continued. Old School director Todd Phillips passed; he was too busy. Discussions with Brad Bird, the multifaceted animation veteran who also helmed Mission Impossible—Ghost Protocol, went nowhere. Apatow, Anchorman director Adam McKay, Austin Powers director Jay Roach, South Park creators Matt Stone and Trey Parker, and Family Guy creator Seth McFarlane were also on Pascal's list. For all his campaigning, Ruben Fleischer was only a "maybe." Nick Stoller of Forgetting Sarah Marshall was in the same category; Sony liked Stoller but there was concern he wasn't up to the task. One of the more left- field considerations was Arrested Development star Jason Bateman, who had recently made his directorial debut with the comedy Bad Words. Bateman's agency got in touch and although Pascal told them they were "thinking differently at the moment," there was agreement that the studio would like to work with him as a director at some point."
  44. Deadline Ivan Reitman 3/18/14
  45. Dan Aykroyd Facebook post 3/19/14
  46. The Wrap 4/4/14
  47. /Film "Ghostbusters ’: Phil Lord and Chris Miller May Not Direct" 4/7/14
  48. People magazine Ivan Reitman 4/8/14
  49. The Wrap "Marvel's "Ant-Man": Rawson Marshall Thurber Is Frontrunner to Direct" 5/30/14
  50. Vanity Fair Article 6/4/14
  51. Today 7/21/14
  52. Vanity Fair Article 6/4/14
  53. Collider Ivan Reitman interview 9/1/14
  54. Dan Aykroyd (2014). Ghostbusters 1 & 2 Gift Set (2014) "Time Is But A Window: Ghostbusters II and Beyond" (DVD ts. 13:53-15:23). Columbia Pictures. Dan says: "I've written two really solid third movies that if they were made, they would be successful I think. I had Harold work on both of them. I had the benefit of working with him on the really tangible and concrete third idea that the studio sighed off on. So there's my first two ideas and the one from the studio. Harold worked on all three. And um now we're in the process of taking that idea the studio feels comfortable making and as I work on it and I have been -- I hear Harold's sensibility. It's a psychic thing where's he's speaking to me beyond the grave. It's more 'my character wouldn't say that' or 'we can do something better here' or 'Let's do more research' or 'Let's put these words in these character's mouth' or 'Let's move this scene' This character doesn't exist here, what would Harold do?' What would be be writing here. I have that all the way through as I work on the third concept. Now what movie is going to be made at this point, we're not sure. But it'll hopefully be something that passes the torch to a new generation and picks up so that young people going forward can be a part of it in a new way."
  55. The I Bang, transcript of Dan Aykroyd on "Unmasked with Ron Bennington" on Sirius XM 2/18/15
  56. Slash Film "Paul Feig Turned Down 'Ghostbusters 3' in Favor of the Female-Led Reboot" 5/31/15
  57. KROQ June 8, 2016 Ivan Reitman 1:15:00-1:17:24 Ivan Reitman says: "I think four or five years ago, Harold, Danny and I uh cause we basically controlled Ghostbusters with Bill, the four of us. It was a goofy deal to do that sequel where we were left strangely in control even though Columbia technically owned the property and it couldn't be made without all of us agreeing unanimously which made it impossible because, y'know, we had this sort of wild genius Bill Murray who didn't really want to do anything particularly not another Ghostbusters at this moment um in his career but we started talking about it about four years ago. I was going to direct it and we worked out a couple of scripts that one of which, y'know, the studio immediately greenlit, loved it, and it was the passing of the torch movie that everyone says this should be, the new Paul Feig should be. And um, unfor-- Bill wouldn't even read the script for about a year. I don't think he really read the script. He may have read the first 20 pages in which he dies and um--liter--it was a really good script. And then unfortunately Harold got really sick and then passed away about 2 years ago. A terrible loss. For the world. A personal loss. And a professional loss. I decided that moment, 'This is going to be too tough. I can't do it without Harold.' I certainly can't do it-- I can't push this big rock up the mountain and get Bill on---so we decided - about that time, we went out and started listening to other people--other directors with ideas and Paul Feig really came up with an intriguing idea which was, y'know, 'Let's just tell the story all over again,' uh which I wasn't sure if I agreed with. That was sort of the greatest point of contention but I loved his idea of making the Ghostbusters women and focusing it that way. And it felt very fresh. Most of the male actors were too frightened to step into Bill's, into Danny's, into Harold's, and Ernie's uh footsteps so where that was a great opportunity for the funniest women and that's really what this movie is."
  58. KROQ June 8, 2016 Ivan Reitman
  59. Movie Web "Harold Ramis Talks Ghostbusters 3 and Meatballs Remake" 9/30/2009
  60. Wallace, Daniel (2015). Ghostbusters The Ultimate Visual History, p. 222. Insight Editions, San Rafael CA USA, ISBN 9781608875108. Dan Aykroyd says: "For a while the concept for the third movie was that we'd cleaned up all the ghosts in New York and the ghostbusters were out of business. But that's not where we should be going, we should have new ghostbusters doing their thing, being handed the torch by the old. Once people start thinking along those lines, we're going to be able to keep it alive."
  61. KROQ June 8, 2016 Ivan Reitman 1:15:37-1:16:07 Ivan Reitman says: "I was going to direct it and we worked out a couple of scripts that one of which, y'know, the studio immediately greenlit, loved it, and it was the passing of the torch movie that everyone says this should be, the new Paul Feig should be. And um, unfor-- Bill wouldn't even read the script for about a year. I don't think he really read the script. He may have read the first 20 pages in which he dies and um--liter--it was a really good script."
  62. KROQ June 8, 2016 Ivan Reitman
  63. Rolling Stone "Ivan Reitman: Why We're Still Talking About 'Ghostbusters' 30 Years Later" 7/6/16 Ivan Reitman says: "Aykroyd, Ramis, and I worked on another draft of the film with two other writers, Lee Eisenberg and Gene Stupnitsky. We had a very good script that was a more traditional sequel idea. It was the passing of the torch from the original Ghostbusters to a new group led by Oscar, the little baby in the second movie. Bill Murray's character, Venkman, dies pretty early in the film and his ghost is a very major character in the film. Bill actually got a lot to do even though he wasn't a human anymore."
  64. Vulture "Ivan Reitman on Bill Murray, Internet Trolls, and Why He Fought for the Ghostbusters Reboot" 7/14/16 Ivan Reitman says: "Oscar, is a postgrad student, and weird things start to happen. Bill Murray dies in the first scene, because he always said, "I won't do it unless I die." And I said, "Okay, you got it." [Laughs.] It was a father-son story, with him as a ghost. By the way, the studio green-lit it. Everything was ready to go. I couldn’t get his attention, and in the midst of that, Harold got really sick. And that was pretty much it."
  65. Ottawa Citizen "Dan Aykroyd returns home to Ottawa to help other actors" 3/16/13
  66. ABC News Q&A 4/23/13
  67. Short List 5/13/13
  68. Larry King Now 5/20/13 Interview with Dan Aykroyd 2:10
  69. Comic Book.com Article 5/20/13
  70. MTB "Dan Aykroyd Hints At Ghostbuster ‘Cadets’ In ‘Ghostbusters’ Threequel" 4/13/09 Dan Aykroyd says: "They'll be lots of cadets, boys and girls, who'll be learning how to use the psychotron, the accelerators and all the new stuff, the neuron splitter, which is going to be the interplaner, interceptor and all these great tools that they're going to have, to flip from dimension to dimension."
  71. Deadline Ivan Reitman 3/18/14
  72. EW Ivan Reitman interview 3/29/14
  73. Crave Online Ivan Reitman interview 3/31/14
  74. Movie Web "EXCLUSIVE: Harold Ramis Talks Ghostbusters 3 and Meatballs Remake" 9/30/09 Harold Ramis says: "The thing that I pitched for my character is that he's been living in Geneva, and he works for the Institute of Imaginary Science. The work we are doing doesn't require any conceptual, intellectual, special, or mathematical models for what we are doing. Even we don't know what we are doing. It's that theoretical."
  75. tyrannojones Tweet #1 3/9/16
  76. tyrannojones Tweet #4 3/9/16
  77. tyrannojones Tweet #5 3/9/16
  78. tyrannojones Tweet #2 3/9/16
  79. tyrannojones Tweet #3 3/9/16
  80. Den of Geek! U.K. "Paul Feig Interview: Ghostbusters, The Web, Sony" Page 1 7/4/16 Paul Feig says: "But the core thing of the sequel was, in all the scripts I'd read, that there was a new team that had come together. The old team had been forgotten. Then the old team showed up, and gave them the stuff and trained the new team up."
  81. Esquire Dan Aykroyd Interview 12/4/12
  82. Variety article 7/10/12
  83. http://www.variety.com/VR1117991624.html
  84. http://moviesblog.mtv.com/2008/10/09/bill-murray-calls-for-female-ghostbuster-in-third-film/
  85. http://www.boston.com/thingstodo/gotoit/2009/02/chat_with_dan_a.html
  86. http://www.aintitcool.com/node/41463
  87. Variety article 7/10/12
  88. Deadline Ivan Reitman 3/18/14
  89. http://www.movieweb.com/news/NEy4zEAESl6sBG
  90. http://blog.screenweek.it/2009/10/ivan-reitman-on-ghostbusters-3-its-now-official-and-everybodys-in-it-53584.php
  91. http://featuresblogs.chicagotribune.com/entertainment_popmachine/2008/09/harold-ramis-co.html
  92. http://www.boston.com/thingstodo/gotoit/2009/02/chat_with_dan_a.html
  93. http://www.wbcn.com/topic/play_window.php?audioType=Episode&audioId=3517978
  94. http://www.aintitcool.com/node/41463
  95. http://featuresblogs.chicagotribune.com/entertainment_popmachine/2008/09/harold-ramis-co.html
  96. http://www.aintitcool.com/node/41463
  97. http://featuresblogs.chicagotribune.com/entertainment_popmachine/2008/09/harold-ramis-co.html
  98. http://www.aintitcool.com/node/41463
  99. http://blog.screenweek.it/2009/10/ivan-reitman-on-ghostbusters-3-its-now-official-and-everybodys-in-it-53584.php
  100. http://moviesblog.mtv.com/2008/12/04/will-signourney-weaver-appear-in-the-ghostbusters-sequel-shes-got-ideas/
  101. Reddit AMA "AMA with the developers of 2009's Ghostbusters: The Video Game!" 7/16/16 Drew Haworth says: "No truth to that one! Our script for the game is entirely original--with, of course, heavy nods to the films."
  102. Reddit AMA "AMA with the developers of 2009's Ghostbusters: The Video Game!" 7/16/16 John Melchior says: "No, this story was original."
  103. Reddit AMA "AMA with the developers of 2009's Ghostbusters: The Video Game!" 7/16/16 John Melchior says: "We wanted this to be GB3, Dan and Harold considered this game to be the third film and mention it in the making of video. However, there was no way Sony Pictures was going to allow for that. They needed to not have that tied to a game, which I get. We pushed hard, but we get it. We had a BADASS logo for it tho..lol."
  104. Uproxx "Screenwriters Rhett Reese and Paul Wernick On Zombieland: Double Tap, Being Rejected By Joe Pesci, And Deadpool 3" 10/14/19 Rhett Reese says: "Yeah, we had a scene on a golf course where Bill Murray was playing golf with Dan Aykroyd, Ernie Hudson, and Harold Ramis. And the three of them were trying to convince Bill to be in Ghostbusters 3 and he was reluctant. And Bill was pissed off because, who was playing golf in the foursome ahead of him very slowly? Joe Pesci. So, Bill Murray hits the drive into Joe Pesci, basically past him. Joe Pesci is really mad, turns around, and is upset. So, they all hate Pesci."

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