It’s been a strange ten years for Ghostbusters fans. After Ghostbusters and Ghostbusters II in 1984 and 1989, the film series was put on the shelf for 27 years. In 2016, it was to be revived by some of the most popular Saturday Night Live comedians around. Heavily relying on improvisation, the reboot was considered a box office bomb, with the sequel quickly quashed by the studio.
After that, they returned to the original storyline with Ghostbusters: Afterlife in 2021. On half the budget of the 2016 entry, it was just $20 million shy at the box office at $203 million. It was successful enough to get a 2024 sequel, which made about as much as Afterlife but with a $25 million budget boost. With Ghostbusters being back in contemporary pop culture, another film is now in the works.
Exploring More of the Ghostbusters World
Regardless of whether the 2016 Ghostbusters is counted as a part of the film series these days, its contribution of $229 million to the pile has helped to bring the franchise to over $1.1 billion, per the figures The Numbers reports. Still, even when not adjusted for inflation, the 1984 installment stands as the most successful worldwide at $300 million. There’s an extra layer of success to take into consideration these days, though.
Ghostbusters: Frozen Empire hit cinemas in March 2024, was released for home media in June 2024, and was on Netflix by July 22, 2024. So swiftly after its release, there was still a lot of buzz around the movie. It debuted second on Netflix’s global chart and amassed over 10 million views in that week.
In any case, that’s a lot of engagement and positivity for the most recent flick, almost guaranteeing another movie. In an interview with TheDirect, that was confirmed by the director and co-writer of the last two films, Gil Kenan. Speaking on him and Jason Reitman bringing more big Ghostbusters stories to the screen, he said, “And stay tuned… There’ll be more about that later.”
A Busy Time for Ghostbusters
At the box office, three films in eight years is the busiest Ghostbusters has ever been. All this activity has clearly reignited interest in the setting. It has even led to the popularity of the brand in other corners of entertainment increasing. Looking through the branded section of the Hippodrome online casino, you can see the 2017 hit slot Ghostbusters Triple Slime front and center. In the competitive slots space, ranking highly on the page is a great sign of its popularity.
Drawing on the classic characters and memorabilia from the first movie, Ghostbusters Triple Slime has boomed in the last couple of years. In another realm of gaming, Ghostbusters is also going strong. Ghostbusters: Spirits Unleashed boasts a very positive aggregate review score on Steam. Many hail the fun mechanics and goofy moments that are akin to the classic films.
Along with these games gaining popularity and a new movie being in the works, Netflix is also looking to get in. As reported in June 2022, an animated series for Ghostbusters will be coming to Netflix. Kenan says that he and Reitman are also actively involved in that series.
With so much buzz around Ghostbusters right now, it’s not a surprise that another film is in the works.
