The ’80s are a beacon of nostalgia, from the music and video games to television and movies. The era brought us Indiana Jones, Back to the Future, numerous John Hughes romps, and Ghostbusters. From the librarian’s terrified scream and the film’s unforgettable theme music, Ghostbusters grabs you in its Proton Pack stream and doesn’t let go. The eccentric and hysterical performances from stars Bill Murray, Harold Ramis (R.I.P.), and Dan Aykroyd perfectly complement straight man Ernie Hudson. Writing duo Aykroyd and Ramis’ script and Ivan Reitman’s direction seamlessly blend laughs with some genuinely creepy scares and effects that still hold up nearly forty years later.

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The movie spawned a mini-empire of toys, lunchboxes, an animated series, and anything you could slap the iconic logo on. And, of course, a (underappreciated) sequel, Ghostbusters II, in 1989. And then, for nearly 30 years, nothing. No neatly wrapped franchise, just 2/3 of a trilogy and years of rumors of Ghostbusters III. In 2016 we got the female-led reboot Ghostbusters: Answer the Call. But it just wasn’t the same as closing it out with the original crew.

In 2021, we got the next best thing, Ghostbusters: Afterlife, where the descendants of Egon take over the busting duties, and we get a satisfying few minutes of screen time from the remaining Ghostbusters. This kind of trilogy is getting another installment with a Ghostbusters: Afterlife sequel. Here’s what we know about it so far.

The Plot

     Sony Pictures Releasing

The sequel was only recently greenlit, so there isn’t much to go on except for a basic plot. The brush, cornfields, and small town strip of Summerville, OK, will be traded in for the setting of the original two films, New York City. The beloved Ghostbusters converted firehouse is also said to be the base of operations for the sequel.

With Gozer blasted back to another dimension in Ghostbusters: Afterlife, it’s a safe bet that that portal is closed for good. It wrapped up the original lore of Ghostbusters nicely, tying up loose ends like the madman architect behind Dana Barrett’s “spook central” apartment building as well as Egon’s own story.

Is there any chance of revisiting Vigo, the painting-trapped bogeyman from Ghostbusters II? Possibly, though, it would be a little too lazily formulaic to once again pit the new Ghostbusters up against a ghoul from the original team’s past. Maybe a reference or two to Vigo would fit nicely.

History is likely rich with scary people upon which the next antagonist and story could be based, so there’s no shortage of inspiration for the writing team of the sequel.

The Cast and Crew

All signs point to the cast of Ghostbusters: Afterlife returning for its sequel. This includes McKenna Grace, Carrie Coon, Paul Rudd, and Finn Wolfhard. Hopefully, the OG roster of Peter Venkman, Ray Stantz, and Winston Zeddemore will make an appearance to lend some advice to the new blood behind the wheel of Ecto-1.

The recent players are an excellent team in Afterlife, particularly McKenna Grace (The Handmaid’s Tale) as the inquisitive, brilliant Lisa Simpson-esque Phoebe Spengler. Carrie Coon takes the struggling single mom role to new and more interesting levels as Callie Spengler. Finn Wolfhard (Stranger Things) plays the Bart to the aforementioned Lisa with ease and charm as Trevor Spengler. And Paul Rudd is just Paul Rudd, which is to say terrific.

One notable change in the living among the dead of the Afterlife sequel is director Jason Reitman, who will be stepping down to co-write instead and produce the sequel.

In a Deadline piece, Reitman said:

Afterlife co-writer Gil Kenan will take over directing duties for the sequel:

It’s good to know another Ghostbusters fan will be calling the shots on this sequel, just as we loved that Reitman, the son of Ghostbusters director Ivan Reitman, was tapped to continue the franchise his father helped build.

Release Date

The arrival of the sequel is slated for December 2023, a pretty quick turnaround considering we just got the official news it was happening.

Ghostbusters: Afterlife honorably carried on the tradition of the original two films, taking the fight against ill-willed spirits from the sprawling city streets to bumpy backroads. It took risks and delivered a worthy follow-up to its predecessors, even if we had to wait 30 years.