tylergfoster wrote: ↑March 23rd, 2024, 10:02 am Although coming in just under the gross of the previous one has to sting a bit, I don't think this is a death knell or anything for the current iteration of Ghostbusters, yet. For one, with the somewhat limited amount of family-friendly movie content out there, maybe this one will be able to leg it out a bit and end up grossing more than Afterlife. I would be more hopeful for this if WOM was better, but I have to say it seems like the wildly mixed reactions aren't limited to the critics.
Honestly, my guess is that Murray is not actually that expensive given he's not in it that much, but Murray is also not an actor where I've heard much discussion of how high his price tag actually is. Maybe the filmmakers will be agreeable to returning to an Afterlife budget for a third and final chapter with the Spengler crew, and then maybe a TV show or something.
I don't think it's that unreasonable to believe that Sony might think there's something to be done with the 2016 timeline, but I definitely think it's long odds. Whatever it is, I as a long-time 2016 defender still do not want it to intersect, crossover, or connect with the 1984 timeline at all. I still think that just undermines the new characters, and I'm tired of multiverse stuff. But I'd be thrilled if they did an animated movie with those characters or something (not that I'm holding my breath).
I've read that the average box office revenue is down from last year, so I'm sure Sony will take that into consideration. 'Afterlife' came out post-pandemic and was the first canonical Ghostbusters movie featuring the original cast in nearly 40 years, directed by a Reitman. Naturally, it generated a lot of hype. But I understand your point about the importance of word-of-mouth. I'm also hopeful about the box office performance for FE.
Regarding Bill Murray—and I can't believe I'm saying this, especially on a Ghostbusters fan forum where I'm ready to be shot down—I don't want him in the next film. I understand that franchise films are sometimes made by committee to secure approval, so he may have to be in it, but I think he has checked out. There were definitely moments in both Afterlife and Frozen Empire that captured shades of Venkman, but there were also scenes where it seemed like his heart wasn't in the performance. I've come across opinions stating, "Bill Murray stole every scene in FE," but I think that is nonsense. He was outshone by Dan Aykroyd and Ernie Hudson. Can you imagine uttering those words in the 80's?
I agree with you about the multiverse point. By the way, 'Answer The Call' utilised New York better as a character than 'Frozen Empire' did. This might largely be due to budgetary reasons, but still, it felt more real in ATC.
I stick by what I said earlier in the thread, if Sony don't green light another sequel due to box office, I can see Ghostbusters movies moving to Netflix akin to the Knives Out franchise.