Ghostbusters: Afterlife is a 2021 film directed by Jason Reitman and written by Reitman and Gil Kenan. The cast consists of Carrie Coon, Finn Wolfhard, Mckenna Grace, and Paul Rudd, while Bill Murray, Dan Aykroyd, Ernie Hudson, Sigourney Weaver and Annie Potts reprise their roles from the original films. It is the fourth film in the Ghostbusters franchise.
A third Ghostbusters film had been in various stages of development since Ghostbusters II in 1989. After Murray refused to commit to the project, and after the death of cast member Harold Ramis in 2014, Sony instead produced a reboot. After the film underperformed at the box office, Reitman began developing a direct sequel to the original films. The new cast members were announced by July 2019, while the original cast signed on two months later.
The film was released theatrically on November 19, 2021.
Plot[]
In Summerville, Oklahoma, Egon Spengler captures an entity in occultist Ivo Shandor's mine outside the town and lures another to his farm. He activates an elaborate setup on his property, but the power fails. Egon manages to conceal the ghost trap in his home before being attacked by the creature and suffering a fatal heart attack, dying shortly after.
Egon's estranged, financially struggling daughter Callie inherits the farm and moves there with her children, Trevor and Phoebe, after being evicted from their Chicago apartment. Trevor becomes infatuated with carhop Lucky Domingo, and the scientifically minded Phoebe enrolls in a summer science class taught by seismologist Gary Grooberson, whom Callie later dates.
Phoebe discovers the farmhouse is haunted, and the poltergeist residing in it leads her to the ghost trap, which she shows to Gary and her new friend, "Podcast". Gary, a fan of the Ghostbusters, helps her learn more about them and her grandfather. He, Phoebe, and Podcast tamper with the trap, releasing Vinz Clortho, one of Gozer the Gozerian's Sentinels, which escapes to the mine. The farm ghost leads Phoebe to Egon's underground laboratory and, after revealing himself as her grandfather, guides her in restoring the Ghostbusters' equipment.
While testing the proton pack with Podcast, Phoebe finds a ghost they call "Muncher" that haunts Shandor's foundry and flees to the town. Having repaired the Ghostbusters' Cadillac Ecto-1's engine (with Egon's help), Trevor uses the car to chase Muncher with the pair; they capture it but are arrested for the damage incurred, and their equipment is seized.
Using the Ghostbusters' telephone number that she had written down, Phoebe contacts Ray Stantz for help and informs him of Egon's death. In turn, Ray tells her what became of the Ghostbusters after they defeated Vigo the Carpathian:[b] After the Ghostbusters had disbanded, Egon took off with their equipment and moved to Summerville to pursue an unspecified threat. Shortly after, Gary is attacked and possessed by Vinz after returning the children home following a date with Callie. Egon's ghost leads Callie to a wall of detailed notes and pictures he kept of his daughter's life, showing he cared about her more than she thought, just before she too is possessed, by Zuul.
Phoebe, Podcast, Lucky, and Trevor find a Gozerian temple within the mine. Exploring further, they discover Shandor is alive in his casket, and automated proton cannons, installed by Egon, hinder Gozer's attempts to cross over. Zuul and Vinz destroy Egon's equipment, allowing Gozer to escape. Shandor awakens and pledges his fealty to Gozer, but instead, he is killed by Gozer.
The children discover Egon's setup is an array of ghost traps buried around the dirt field, and with supernatural chaos distracting the town, recover the seized ghostbusting equipment and head to the mine in Ecto-1. Phoebe distracts Gozer so Podcast can re-capture Zuul, freeing Callie and weakening Gozer's physical form. They lure Gozer and Vinz to the trap field, but it malfunctions and Gozer frees Zuul, who possesses Lucky and fully restores Gozer's power.
Ray and the other surviving original Ghostbusters, Peter Venkman and Winston Zeddemore, arrive to help, and Gozer, after having already killed Egon, seeks to complete her revenge against the quartet for vanquishing her.[c] Supported by Egon's now manifested ghost, Phoebe battles Gozer with her grandfather's proton pack. The Ghostbusters help Phoebe restrain Gozer by crossing their proton streams while Trevor uses his to charge the traps' power source, allowing Callie to activate the ghost traps and capture the deity and its minions. Lucky and Gary are freed from their possessions, and Egon reconciles with his family and friends before passing on to the afterlife.
Cast[]
- Mckenna Grace as Phoebe
- Finn Wolfhard as Trevor
- Carrie Coon as Callie
- Paul Rudd as Mr. Grooberson
- Bill Murray as Dr. Peter Venkman
- Dan Aykroyd as Dr. Raymond "Ray" Stantz
- Ernie Hudson as Winston Zeddemore
- Sigourney Weaver as Dana Barrett
- Annie Potts as Janine Melnitz
Videos[]
Trailers[]
GHOSTBUSTERS- AFTERLIFE - Official Trailer
Official Trailer