Following the release of Ghostbusters: Frozen Empire earlier this year, which was a hit at the box office and recently launched at home, the future looks bright for our favorite supernatural gang. So, although a sequel is yet to be officially given the green light, our guess is that it soon will be.
And that certainly hasn't stopped the cast from dreaming up ideas of where the beloved franchise could go next, with actor Ernie Hudson, who reprises his role of original Ghostbuster Winston Zeddemore (who has long been my personal favorite), telling us he has plenty of thoughts on the matter.
Revealing that he's always happy to suit up once again for another ghostbusting adventure, Hudson did admit to GamesRadar+ in an interview that he's sadly the last to hear about any new installments. Whilst the catchphrase may go 'who ya gonna call', it appears that Hudson isn't necessarily at the top of studio Sony's speed dial, as he tells us: "I haven’t heard anything [about a sequel to Frozen Empire] but I’m the last guy to hear… I try to say 'hey guys, you know, I have some ideas we can talk about first'. But I do love Jason [Reitman, writer and producer], he reaches out, and I know they have a lot of ideas - I just want it to be known that I'm always available. It's exciting, there's lots to explore, we are in an interesting place, and there's an audience for it. Let's take it to a different level!"
In terms of what Hudson means by a "different level", he would like to see the franchise expand out of America and go international. Of course, New York City is and always will be the spiritual home of the Ghostbusters, hence they returned there for Frozen Empire after moving events to Oklahoma for previous chapter Afterlife, but Hudson thinks there are stories to tell outside of the US too.
As he explains to us: "It was important to come back to New York, the place where it all started, which is the epicenter or where we figure all of this out. But, I've always said that the Ghostbusters universe is international, it goes all over the world. Hopefully, if we move forward from this place, we can explore other stories, cultures, and possibilities. There are ghosts in every culture everywhere and we can jump off from New York."
Of course though, in New York there is Winston's privately owned paranormal research center, which he is funding to further research the supernatural. And whilst this does play a key role in Frozen Empire, Hudson thinks it also opens up the Ghostbusters series to the possibility of exploring more complex ideas - again tying to his idea of taking the franchise to a new level.
Hudson breaks it all down, stating that he wants to see the series widen its range and dive into something deeper: "I'd love to see more of that research, we all have questions. There's much more to just capturing ghosts and storing them away. Do we treat all ghosts the same? Are there ghosts out there helping us? We can look into all that - how ghosts impact our lives."
He continues: "A lot of people believe that ghosts can’t move furniture around but they can impact our thoughts and feelings, so a lot of bad behavior can be the influence of what we call negative energy - maybe it’s paranormal energy. To me that would be interesting to explore because it takes it from just being an otherworldly paranormal presence to how it’s integrated and is a part of who we are."
The actor believes that this move may also allow the series to hit back at criticisms that it's reliant on nostalgia bait, which both Afterlife and Frozen Empire attracted. However, Hudson also emphasizes that moving forward you still do need those nods to the original movies: "I think it's very important to tie what we have done into the original movies, as they have captured the hearts of people everywhere - so we needed that. But paranormal activity can be frightening and a little heavier. We don't always have to be so light with it - it's nice to laugh but there are levels we can include and play with."
The above would also allow Hudson to further evolve his character of Winston, who he has been portraying since the original 1984 movie. Many fans believe that the character didn't get enough love before from the franchise, but finally it's paying attention and giving Zeddemore the respect he has long deserved.
Winston is now essentially in charge of the Ghostbusters, as the man bankrolling them and running the paranormal research center. And as Hudson concludes, it's been a long time coming for his character: "Yeah, it has. Winston started out as just a guy looking for a job and I love that we find him 30 years later evolved. I like the message that sends to certain communities, that anything is possible. He still loves the Ghostbusters, he’s still very involved, but I think he also sees it on a much deeper level than just busting ghosts and having fun - there’s something behind this. It gives him a place to grow into which I think is great."
Ghostbusters: Frozen Empire is available to buy or rent at home on digital now.
Check out our guide to all the upcoming major movie release dates to fill out your watch-list.
