Ghostbusters: Afterlife hit theaters starting Thursday evening, and the film is off to a strong start, scaring up $4.5 million from preview audiences.
According to Deadline, that’s better than Sony Pictures had predicted.
Moreover, the film, which is a true sequel to 1989’s Ghostbusters 2, is resonating with audiences, with a Rotten Tomatoes score of 95%.
The comedy reunites the first two films’ original cast, save for Rick Moranis and the late Harold Ramis, who died in 2015; however, series co-star and co-creator Ramis’ memory lingers long over the new movie. In Afterlife, the grandkids of Harold’s character, Dr. Egon Spengler — played by Mckenna Grace and Finn Wolfhard — take up the family ghostbusting business.
Getting the cast together was key for fans — and important for Ernie Hudson, who reprises his role as Winston Zeddemore. Back in January, he told ABC Audio that he felt “blessed” to be back.
As he explained, “For me to be able to come in, work with a new cast, but also to be together with Bill Murray and Dan Aykroyd, Sigourney Weaver and Annie Potts, and realize that it’s been 35 years, but we’re all still doing what we love to do, yeah…I really feel blessed to have been a part of this franchise and what it means to people.”
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