Monday, January 21, 2013

What? Another Ghostbusters post...F@#K

So, it's 2013. And according to Dan Aykroyd, this is the year that Ghostbusters 3 goes into development (he's been saying that since 1988, I think). They've restarted the process shortly after Bill Murray supposedly shredded the first script.  As many of my loyal readers know, I'm very interested in the project. So much so that I provided casting ideas and an introductory script layout for Sony pictures and Dan Aykroyd to mull over for a bit until handing me a paycheck to finish out a script. Instead, I find out that they've hired other writers.  After almost a year of brewing ideas and thinking about cast members, I've decided to go somewhat a different route with the story and casting. So continue on reading if you want to read a fanboy's dream cast and story idea for Ghostbusters 3. If you aren't interested, turn off your computer and smash it on the ground because you do not deserve world wide access to the webs.

First off, I'm sticking with the idea of a new, young cast with the older cast members in mentor roles...but this time around it is slightly different from my other posts.  Maybe it's just me, but I'd prefer different actors in these roles as opposed to the usual Seth Rogen, Jason Segal, Jesse Eisenberg, or Jonah Hill types. All of the ones I've chose have comedic experience, and in my opinion all have their own hilarious strengths. Play those up and hope that they mesh well together.

In my initial script idea, I wanted to run the Ghostbusters as a business, but let's be honest, if a small company like that saved New York City from certain supernatural doom (twice), they're going to be given a government contract to protect the nation from ghosts and goblins. At least, I'd hope so. So in 1990, the Ghostbusters Act was passed and the members  of the small company were given a billion dollar budget to protect all government facilities. Winston, Ray, and Egon all went to Washington. Peter Venkman thought about a better way to use the Ghostbusters name.

Flash forward twenty plus years to present day, Winston is a former Mayor of NYC running for President (against the incumbant President Lenny) while Egon and Ray are both in charge of the "Department of Supernatural Defense" also known as the DSD (like the FBI or CIA but against ghosts).  As for Venkman, he kept the original Ghostbusters franchise and ran it as a profitable business for fearful wealthy clients. He worried the government would pull their funds like Columbia University did to them in the first film. Peter and Dana married and became filthy rich by exploiting the wealthy class of people's need for protection from paranormal creatures. Louis and Janine still work for them in New York City running the business while Venkman retired to an island paradise (unless of course Murray is interested in returning to the film). Louis (please convince Rick Moranis to come out of retirement for a small cameo) and Janine have their own team of Ghostbusters that travel where needed.

Now, an entire new cast of characters can be built. You can have the DSD Ghostbusters from each territory gathered in Washington for a conference where they learn that President Lenny is cutting funding for their program even further. In the early 2000s, the Ghostbusters (at the height of their funding) had thousands of employees, but as the years went on and a recession hit...the numbers have dwindled. Now, they have less than one hundred employees. After this next cut, they'll have only a handful.  All of this is in the introductory scenes (first 20 minutes) and most of this exposition is told through dialogue. Then, we'll have Egon and Ray flipping through human resource files to hand pick the best employees who become the new team:


  1. Lowell (Nick Offerman) - A political speaker and the upfront voice for the DSD. He covers all variances in paranormal protection plans, spectral containment guidelines, ectoplasm clean up, and handles media relations. If the DSD creates a cover-up after a supernatural incident, Lowell relays the needed information. If someone is accused of operating unlicensed spectral hunting equipment, Lowell and his partner, Chloe, pay them a visit.
  2. Chloe (Melissa McCarthy) - Paranormal security officer who sites violations for improper conduct. She travels side by side with Offerman and determines proper handling of a situation through fines, jail time, disposal of improper equipment and whether or not "the team" should be deployed for spectral clean-up.
  3. Zeke (David Walton) - He has a paranormal psychology degree. He heads the New England territory after years of climbing the ladder which was difficult with his sarcastic mouthing off  to clients or Lowell or even Ray and Egon....pretty much anyone he speaks to. 
  4. Edgar (Dan Fogler) -  A former New York Ghostbuster that left to pursue a career in the DSD. He has an attitude where he jumps in head first no matter what the situation. Of the entire team, he is the only without a science based background.
  5. Cole (Deon Cole) - engineer from the Chicago research facility who worked in a laboratory side by side with Egon and his protégé to create an enhanced super containment unit along with many other new technological devices throughout the years 
  6. Gunthar (Reggie Watts) - he is an off-beat inventor who is able to repair anything on-site with minimal effort. Also has studied the effects of ectoplasm and the supernatural his entire life.


In my other post, I said to cast Brett Harrison as Oscar...but I'd rather that be Chris Pratt.  Oscar is a member of Venkman's Ghostbuster team in NYC with Donald Glover, Jake Johnson, Damon Wayans Jr., Bruce Campbell, and Emma Stone as Louis and Janine's daughter, Natalie. Think of this team as the Expendables, they get a client, pull off the job, and get their payday until the next client arrives. The story focuses more on DSD group that's why I don't cover much of this group...except for Oscar and Natalie who are taking over the day to day operations of Ghostbusters. Since Venkman and Dana are retired, Louis and Janine are prepping the next generation.

So, new cast and introductory story of two Ghostbusters teams. For the plot, I'd stick with the spectral terrorists idea including the return of a couple of revenge seeking baddies - Walter Peck (William Aterton) and Jack Hardemeyer (Kurt Fuller) and their rag-tag bunch of humans (Alan Tudyk, Tyler Labine, Ken Jeong, Danny McBride, Horatio Sanz, NPH, etc.) and then Seth (Kal Penn) as Egon's former apprentice/protégé  who has discovered an ancient evil to summon and become supreme ruler of the world. He uses the spectral terrorists as a decoy for the DSD.  They take out the NYC containment unit in the Firehouse and release all the spirits.  The DSD must intervene to help Oscar and Emma regain control of the city (montage of busting ghosts). During this time, Seth uses distraction as a way to conduct his own plan by rerouting the spirits in the super containment unit in Chicago as a conductor to summon the Babylonian demon sorcerer Chamos who takes the excess spectral energy in Chicago and New York to summon an army of evil minions.

The NYC Ghostbusters team up with the DSD in this epic showdown. Will Natalie and Oscar have romantic tension between them? Who will survive to be in the sequels and ultimately be the new team of Ghostbusters? Can Reggie Watts act?  Only the script writer knows 2 of these answers for sure...and I really hope Reggie Watts can act. I love his stand-up routine, music, and his look. So there it is....another year down, another story beginning...let's get this pay check going my direction. The ball is in your court Mr. Aykroyd.

UPDATE:

  •  I don't know how I never thought of Patrick Warburton, but he should be involved (perhaps the role I offered to David Walton).  
  • Tom Lennon should play a Louis Tully-type character. 
  • Baron Vaughn could replace Deon Cole or Reggie Watts if necessary. 
  • Kumail Nanjiani could replace Kal Penn....actually, I'd prefer Kumail.

  • So many comedic actors out there to choose from. Just don't offer these roles to the Hollywood standards of Steve Carell, Jim Carrey, Adam Sandler, Chris Rock, Kevin James, Jonah Hill, Michael Cera, Seth Rogen, James Franco, Will Ferrell, Zach Galifianakis, Mike Meyers, Eddie Murphy, Seth Green...etc.


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