Could Reboot Of ‘Ghostbusters’ Star Melissa McCarthy?
A comeback for the 1980s classic Ghostbusters franchise is in the works, with the third installment of the film being headed by Paul Feig, who plans to assemble an all-female cast for the film. Now, rumors are that the next Ghostbusters star could be Melissa McCarthy, of Mike & Molly fame.
In an interview with USA Today’s Entertain This!, director Paul Feig answered questions about his plans to cast nothing but funny women in the new Ghostbusters film. The film will be a “reboot” rather than a continuation, he says, to rebuild the franchise for those who may not have seen it. New rumors are that the Ghostbusters reboot will star Melissa McCarthy.
McCarthy previously worked with Feig in Bridesmaids and The Heat. Screen Crush reports that she is in early talks to be the next Ghostbusters star as well. If filming starts this year, however, the Crush points out that Melissa is a busy lady with shooting for Michelle Darnell commencing in March and her sitcom, Mike & Molly, coming back for another season of taping in the fall.
The Hollywood Reporter, which Crush sourced, also points out that actresses like Jennifer Lawrence, Emma Stone, Jillian Bell, and Rebel Wilson have been noted as possibles to become the next Ghostbusters star. HR points out that none of them have the background with Feig that McCarthy does, or the star power she would bring to a comedy role. They do mention that neither Lawrence nor Wilson are considered serious possibilities at this point.
The Huffington Post gives the choice of McCarthy as the next Ghostbusters star “a big yes.” So does Consequence of Sound.
As for the film, Feig says that Ghostbusters 3 will be a “new” film, an “origin” film based on the original from 1984. It will retell the story of how the Ghostbusters began and focus on the women starring in it with characterization becoming different from the original. This means we can likely expect elements of the original to be intact, but for a new storyline to commence based on differing lead characters with the Ghostbusters star, possibly Melissa McCarthy, at point.
