It has taken years, a number of false starts and a complete shift from threequel to remake, but the all-female Ghostbusters reboot took a major step forward today as writer/director Paul Feig tweeted out a picture of the four funny ladies who will be donning proton pack to do battle with a plethora of pesky poltergeists.
— Paul Feig (@paulfeig) January 27, 2015
If you don’t recognize all of the faces here, they are, clockwise starting in the upper left, Kristin Wiig, Melissa McCarthy, Leslie Jones and Kate McKinnon. Wiig and McCarthy, of course, co-starred for Feig in the hit Bridesmaids. McKinnon has been turning in some strong work every week on Saturday Night Live, with her recently satirizing of the recent Calvin Klien’s ad campaign featuring Justin Bieber became an overnight viral hit. Although she had previously served on the writing staff, Jones only joined the on screen cast of SNL earlier this year and hasn’t really had a chance to break out yet.
While I am still disappointed that we won’t be seeing the originals back in their work jumpsuits for one last hurrah, I do have a good feeling about these four ladies. Of the original Ghostbusters, Dan Aykroyd and Bill Murray were also SNL alum, so even though we’re decades separated from their respective runs, perhaps some of the magic will carry over.
As to what shape will the story of this remake take? Feig has already stated that he hopes to have the film scarier than the original, and Drew McWeeny over at Hit Fix is reporting that the our l will not be just playing female versions of the original characters.
Erin Gabler and Abby Bergman are the first two leads, and as the film begins, they are former colleagues. They co-wrote a book about the paranormal together, then went in different directions. Erin works for Columbia, and she’s getting close to tenure, while Abby is more involved in the pursuit of ghosts, with a new partner named Jillian. In a world where there are thirty different “Ghost Hunters” style TV shows out there, the set-up makes sense, and it sets up a tension between serious academic motives and mainstream pop parapsychology.
If I was guessing, I’d bet Wiig is Erin, Jones is Abby, and McKinnon is Jillian. That’s because I’m almost positive Patty, an MTA subway ticket employee who stumbles across the main ghost in the film, is going to be McCarthy. Seems like a perfect fit for her, and I can see how all four of them will fit together as a team…
[T]here’s another role that, if they cast who they want, is going to be the most interesting part of the film. Like I said, these aren’t direct one-to-one corollaries, but there is a character named Martin Heiss who is a professional supernatural debunker. When our new Ghostbusters post some videos of what they’re doing online, Heiss becomes determined to prove that they are fakes, and he ends up at odds with the team for the whole film.
And who do they want to step into William Atherton’s shoes?
Bill Murray, of course.
OK, color me intrigued.
