Sorry, ladies. It’s over. Time to throw your joke notebooks and silly wigs into the cleansing fires of anti-Ghostbusters hate, because a new article in The Hollywood Reporter has shaken up its box-office Magic 8 Ball and declared a sequel to Paul Feig’s 2016 reboot “unlikely.” (Hey, at least we’ll save a bunch of money on improv classes.)
This is in contrast to early reports from optimistic studio executives like Sony’s Rory Bruer, who declared on the film’s opening weekend that “While nothing has been officially announced yet, there’s no doubt in my mind [a sequel] will happen.” That optimism is reportedly waning, though, as studio accountants have determined that the film is on track to lose around $75 million by the end of its run.
Currently at $180 million globally, Ghostbusters has yet to open in a handful of foreign markets, like Japan (where they love ghost movies), Mexico (where they’re pretty cool with the dead, just in general), and France (where they’re neutral on ghosts, but seem to like broad American comedies). Those openings are projected to bring the movie’s box-office take up to $225 million, still well short of the $300 million Sony says Ghostbusters needs to make to break even.
So rather than make a sequel continuing the live-action adventures of Dr. Jillian Holtzmann and the gang, Sony is reportedly looking into an animated movie, set to bow in 2019, set in the Ghostbusters universe, as well as the previously announced TV series Ghostbuster: Ecto Force, which will presumably solve the gender issue by having the Ghostbusters team of 2050 consist entirely of alien wasp creatures. That one’s coming to TV in 2018.
But there’s a glimmer of hope yet, as Sony execs say that merchandising and licensing deals like a planned Ghostbusters theme-park ride in Dubai could help the movie break even in the end. That is, unless people on the internet decide that theme parks in Dubai used to be great, but now they suck, for reasons that have nothing to do with the Ghostbusters theme of said ride, just that it isn’t as fun as it used to be.