If Ghostbusters: Frozen Empire left you hankering for even more of the paranormal-hunting team we’ve all been in love with sice the ‘80s, star Dan Aykroyd has some bad news for you: it’s unlikely they’ll ever appear on screen again. After appearing in both Frozen Empire and its predecessor Ghostbusters: Afterlife, Aykroyd revealed in a new interview with The New York Post that it’s unlikely he, Bill Murray, or Ernie Hudson will ever been seen in another film, should current helmer Gil Kenan choose to continue the legacy sequels’ story.
“I don’t see that coming,” Aykroyd told the outlet while promoting his History Channel series The UnBelievable With Dan Aykroyd. “I don’t see where they would need us to carry it on. They’ve got a whole new cast, and they’ve got whole new ideas. I think probably they’re going to move on to advancing it beyond the originals, which they should.”
Aykroyd is one of the founding members of the Ghostbusters, appearing in Ivan Reitman’s 1984, alongside Murray, Hudson, and the late Harold Ramis, as well as Annie Potts and Sigourney Weaver. He went on to star in the film’s sequel, Ghostbusters II, and made an unrelated cameo in the 2016 reboot film, before appearing in both Afterlife and Frozen Empire, the latter of which hit theaters this past March. With the first film celebrating its fortieth anniversary this year, it’s no wonder he’d be ready to hang up the proton pack — that’s a long time to be busting ghosts!
He isn’t the first ‘80s horror icon to say that it’s time to move on from the franchise that made him a household name, either. Nightmare on Elm Street star Robert Englund said the same thing recently, revealing that he’s gotten too old to continue playing Freddy Krueger, and that it’s time to let the classics lie and focus on new, different stories. Studios, take note: can we stop milking old IP for every dime it’s worth and let the new kids have a turn in the Hollywood sandbox? Just saying.
Frozen Empire director Gil Kenan has hinted that, despite Aykroyd’s comments, there could be future installments starring the legacy sequels’ current cast, which includes Finn Wolfhard, Carrie Coon, Paul Rudd, and James Acaster, among others. Nothing’s been set in stone yet though, so for now, we’re not entirely sure who to call.
Ghostbusters: Frozen Empire is streaming now on Netflix.
