When Sony founded Ghost Corps Inc. in 2015, the studio planned on expanding the Ghostbusters franchise beyond the original 1984 comedy classic and its 1989 sequel. Despite Paul Feig’s reboot in 2016 polarizing the fanbase, Jason Reitman’s Ghostbusters: Afterlife in 2021 won audiences over by revisiting the original team while passing the torch to the next generation. Now, it appears the legacy characters will be stepping back altogether.

Ghostbusters co-creator and star Dan Aykroyd was interviewed by The New York Post to promote his History Channel show The UnBelievable with Dan Aykroyd. When asked if he and fellow Ghostbusters co-star Bill Murray would return for the next installment, Aykroyd sounded less than optimistic:

“I don’t see that coming. 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’s downer news seems to respond to the critics who slammed the recent entry Ghostbusters: Frozen Empire. The follow-up to Afterlife put the new generation of Ghostbusters led by McKenna Grace and Paul Rudd as the central leads with originals Murray, Aykroyd, Ernie Hudson, and Annie Potts back in larger supporting roles. Critics, however, felt the film was overstuffed with multiple characters and nostalgia bait.

Though Frozen Empire managed to crack $200 million worldwide, it carried a larger $100 million price tag than Afterlife’s $75 million, making the sequel less profitable at the box office. Reitman and Frozen Empire director Gil Kenan remain active with further projects as the later told The Direct last October:

Also Check Out: Dan Aykroyd Defends Paul Feig And His 2016 Ghostbusters Reboot

“The answer is yes, Jason [Reitman]… we take the responsibility and the joy of being the keepers of the flame of ‘Ghostbusters‘ very seriously… we definitely are continuing the conversation of telling big ‘Ghostbuster’ stories on the big screen. And stay tuned. There’ll be more. There’ll be more about that later.”

Meanwhile, the immediate future for Ghostbusters will be on the small screen. Reitman and Kenan remain active in developing an animated series exclusively for Netflix. Additionally, Kenan teased that it will “intersect with the Ghostbusters stories that you and I love”.

Are you disappointed to see Aykroyd and the original Ghostbusters cast hang up their proton packs? Is it time for Rudd and his co-stars to carry the franchise? Let us know in the comments.

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