Bill Murray To Play A Ghostly Villain In ‘B.O.O.: Bureau Of Otherworldly Operations’

Bill Murray recently signed on to lend his voice to the DreamWorks Animation comedy B.O.O.: Bureau of Otherworldly Operations.

The frequent Wes Anderson collaborator recently joined the project as the story’s villainous ghost. According to a recent article over at The Hollywood Reporter, Murray will portray a ghost named Addison Drake in the animated flick.

The actor is the latest big name to sign on for B.O.O. Seth Rogen, Melissa McCarthy, Rashida Jones, Matt Bomer, Jennifer Coolidge, and Octavia Spencer are also on-board for the flick. Igor director Tony Leondis is spearheading the project, which DreamWorks and 20th Century Fox hope to have ready by June 5, 2015.

Here’s how the studio describes the project:

“[B.O.O. is a ] supernatural action comedy [that] follows two bumbling apparitions who find themselves in an extraordinary afterlife adventure when they join the Bureau of Otherworldly Operations — the ghost world’s elite counter-haunting unit — and ultimately must face off against the planet’s greatest haunter.”

Does this premise sound a little familiar? Jeff Bridges and Ryan Reynolds also played otherworldly cops who protect the living from all sorts of supernatural fiends in this summer’s box office flop R.I.P.D.. Much like DreamWorks’ B.O.O., the film’s title is an acronym for the ghostly police force. So much for Hollywood originality.

Need more proof? Here’s the synopsis for R.I.P.D.:

“Veteran sheriff Roy Pulsifer has spent his career with the legendary police force known as R.I.P.D. tracking monstrous spirits who are cleverly disguised as ordinary people. His mission? To arrest and bring to justice a special brand of criminals trying to escape final judgment by hiding among the unsuspecting on Earth. Once the wise-cracking Roy is assigned former rising-star detective Nick Walker as his junior officer, the new partners have to turn grudging respect into top-notch teamwork.”

Although the flicks have their similarities, R.I.P.D. didn’t have Bill Murray on its team. Despite his lack of interest in the long-delayed Ghostbusters 3, at least the Stripes star isn’t turning his back entirely on the world of spooks, specters, and ghosts.

Fans of Bill Murray can catch him next in director George Clooney’s star-studded dramatic comedy The Monuments Men. The movie was originally slated to hit theaters this year. Unfortunately, the film’s special effects still needed a little more work. Clooney recently explained that the movie should arrive at some point next year.

Are you a fan of former Saturday Night Live cast member Bill Murray? What do you think about the comedic actor signing on as the villain in DreamWorks Animation’s B.O.O.: Bureau of Otherworldly Operations?

[Image Columbia Pictures / Sony Pictures]