Ghostbusters reboot cast chosen: Wiig, McCarthy, Jones, McKinnon

[Recursion]

I really, really wish Ramis had lived to direct those four.

http://www.hollywoodreporter.com/heat-vision/new-all-female-ghostbusters-cast-767610

Melissa McCarthy, who was already in talks for one of the leads, has signed on for the Paul Feig-directed reboot, and Sony is now negotiating with Kristen Wiig as well as Saturday Night Live players Leslie Jones and Kate McKinnon, The Hollywood Reporter has learned.

Negotiations are ongoing, but the quartet are expected to sign on as the specter-seeking, poltergeist-punishing, phantom-phollowing foursome in the reboot, which is eyeing a summer shoot in New York.

[Jake Stern]

1. Stop "rebooting" classic movies and TV shows.

Is there any originality left in the entertainment biz?

[greatlaurel]

2. The media executives do not care about producing interesting and original productions. But they

will whine when people stop buying tickets to their boring and lousy movies.

[Orrex]

14. It has always been that way and will likely always be that way

They were already remaking films 20 before the first talkies hit the screen.

To complain about the lack of originality in current cinema is to complain about a major component of the entire history of film.

[Orrex]

11. I agree!

And I hear that a theater somewhere is doing yet another Hamlet this season, while Broadway is running a string of revivals.

Why doesn't Hollywood learn from these fine examples?!?

[xmas74]

16. This wasn't supposed to be a reboot

but rather a sequel. Bill Murray was the hold out.

We'll see how this goes. The women in question are a hoot and I'm really excited to see a group of talented women open a major comedy. The only thing I really wish was that this same group of women were doing something original-but I'll take this.

[Recursion]

4. Movie news makes GD pretty often

[Electric Monk]

5. GD SOP

Posts about Israel/Palestine, religion, guns, showbiz, or sports are restricted in this forum.

[bvf]

6. But, also from the SOP:

"Open discussion of showbiz is permitted during very high-profile news events which are heavily covered across all newsmedia."

Not sure if this qualifies. That's for better minds than mine to decide...

[trumad]

8. I agree with you...

It's newsworthy because females are playing the parts that males played the first go around.

[Rex]

7. These reboots...I dunno.

I can see a remake of something every decade or so. But series reboots are iffy imo. Sometimes the original series was made up more of the personalities of the characters playing them, then the actual surrounding of the show. Some reboots seem to be about the CGI and fall flat on character. IMO.

Give me more District 9s and less Star Trek and Star Wars reboots. I guess at 40 plus I am somewhat biased on the subject.

[TheKentuckian]

10. Star Wars is a direct sequel not a reboot.

[Rex]

23. Oh! I thought it was a reboot!

Ty for the correction.

[TheKentuckian]

35. Sure, yeah this will be 30 years after Return of the Jedi. Hamill, Ford, Fischer, Daniels, Mayhew,

and I guess Kenny Baker will all be returning to reprise their roles and the young actors will have distinct new characters.

[Orrex]

15. District 9 is a reboot of Pocahontas

Much as I love District 9 (and I do--I watched it just two days ago), it's simply another reboot in a very long line of white savior narratives.

[Rex]

22. Wow, never thought of it like that but you are right.

But wouldn't that be star wars and star trek as well as a million other movies and shows? I remember the white savior narrative being big in the 90s. My fav of course as a teen was ninja movies. Jon Claude Van Dam comes to mind. Not as a fav, but as a good example.

[Orrex]

25. Well...

But wouldn't that be star wars and star trek as well as a million other movies and shows?

Yes, sadly!

The WSN usually requires the "white savior" to "save" the indigenous/minority population out of the perception that it can't or won't save itself. To that end, I'm not sure that Star Wars fits the bill (though it's rife with other classic "tropes," of course). Star Trek, though, did indeed have a number of "white savior" episodes, especially the original series. Kirk was very fond of scrapping the Prime Directive and beaming in to some primitive village to "fix" whatever "problems" the natives couldn't be bothered to correct.

I'm usually reluctant to play the label game in this way, because it tends to reduce the critiquing process to a checklist of trendy critical buzzwords that we can all check off as we find them. However, this particular device has come to seem so egregious that simply can't help seeing it!

[Rex]

27. The Last Samurai is a great example of current WSN releases.

I meant Star Wars in that even though there are billions of different lifeforms in that far far far away galaxy...Han, Luke, Obi Won, Leia, Darth and the Emperor himself...all white key characters that shape the storyline. I know there are key alien species, but it is a white guy and another white guy in the first film that save the day and blow up the Death Star. Star Wars would have been far more interesting imo if the main characters would have all been like Chewie...aliens. Another just released example would be Guardians of the Galaxy...sure a raccoon and a tree, still their leader is some white guy from Earth.

I don't really look at it as a game, more of a thought exercise.

[Orrex]

32. That's a good analysis re: Star Wars

I hadn't thought of it like that, exactly, but I think it's spot on.

My beef had always been that the story boils down to the entire galaxy depending on the actions of a few elites (who are, as you note, white). My understanding is that Lucas wanted a more diverse cast in the original but was rebuffed.

Regardless, how much of the universe can happen to the same four characters? This is my one major concern about the new trilogy, that it will involve the original cast members too heavily. That would be lovely for nostalgia, but not necessarily the best choice for the narrative

I don't really look at it as a game, more of a thought exercise.

Maybe game was the wrong word, but it puts me in mind of the internet's beloved Joseph Campbell scavenger hunt, in which people boil down a film or novel into its Campbell-esque archetypes and in the process ignore most discussion of any other aesthetic considerations.

That is, a story can still be engaging and satisfying even if it adheres too closely to one "trope" or another.

[CBGLuthier]

9. Gee, I wonder if Leslie Jones will have half her part taken away just like

Ernie Hudson did. Reboot away but some things will never change in Hollywood.

[Orrex]

18. Ernie Hudson kicks ass

He's been in some crap films, but I've never seen him give a bad performance.

Eminently watchable in any role he plays.

[Orrex]

12. I'm confident that this will suck slightly less than Beetlejuice 2

Love the proposed cast, but the concept leaves me cold.

[davidpdx]

13. This is going to be a POS movie

They are going to completely fuck up the Ghostbuster's remake. The the fact that Melissa McCarthy may be in the film right there pretty much screams lame. I'm sure they've got a hip-hop version (or something else) of the original Ghostbusters song to screw it up even further. I like Kristen Wiig as she is funny as hell and a great actress. The rest of them, crap.

I too wish Ramis was alive still. He was a funny guy with a kind face. If the original cast members have any guts they'll run the other way from this disaster.

[Glengoolie]

17. Swing and a miss...

[Ykcutnek]

19. A lot of sexists will be angry that they didn't use four men again. nt

[Snow Leopard]

21. a lot of sexists will be happy they didn't ;^)

[wheniwasincongress]

20. Excellent cast

I for one am excited. The writer of The Heat is doing the Ghostbusters script, so it will be good. The move to intentionally cast an all-female group is HUGE. The best I would have reasonably expected was three guys (such as Rogen, Franco, Jason Bateman) and one Hot Chick (who of course would have the closefitting jumpsuit.)

[tridim]

30. After watching "The Interview" I'm glad Rogen and Franco weren't cast in GB.

I like both of them, but they just aren't Ghostbuster types.

IMO Kristen Wiig can do anything, she'll be great.

[Blue_Tires]

24. JESUS FUCKING CHRIST...NO MORE REBOOTS!

[Baclava]

34. The only reboot I think I remember I liked was Total Recall - but only because of Kate

[zappaman]

26. I can't wait not to see this! n/t

[outside]

28. The coming attractions

I saw at the theater last weekend were.

1. Max Max.
2. Fast and the furious.
3. Avengers-2.
4. Terminator.

All recycled ideas with a 2015 special effects.

[Scout]

29. i will most likely STILL think it was a stupid movie

female stars or not

[Calista241]

31. If there's something strange

In your neighborhood...

[LittleBlue]

33. I see they're also re-rebooting Indiana Jones

with Chris Pratt. Ugh.

Hollywood ran out of ideas. Everything is just a reboot, a comic book, or some other super safe project like Sniper. Must suck to be a writer and never able to sell new ideas to studios.

Premium TV > any big budget movie nowadays