Why are people still possessed by this franchise? Jason: For a lot of people, the original was the first horror movie and most important comedy they ever saw as kids, and it was their introduction to science fiction. It touches on so many genres and it becomes part of your language. Ivan: Of all the films that I’ve done, this one has hung on the most in the largest way. So many people identify with it. It’s astounding. Jason, what are your memories of seeing the original get made? Jason: I remember when they dumped marshmallow on [actor] WilliamAtherton [EPA inspector Walter Peck]. I remember some of the special effects tests, and I was there for the recording of the original score. It was one of the first moments where I fell in love with the movies. Ivan: Weren’t you also there for the test on the cards? Jason: Yes, the index cards in the library. The ones that fly out of the drawer! What was that called again? [A card catalogue.] What was it like the day that the OG cast showed up? Jason: I showed the screenplay to Bill [Murray], Dan [Aykroyd], Ernie [Hudson], Sigourney [Weaver] and the family of HaroldRamis and the feedback we got was that they loved it. That was more important than anything because we were picking up this movie very carefully. Ivan: There was a palpable excitement when the old boys showed up and seeing them all together. It was really quite emotional for me. How did you conceive this new story? Jason: I didn’t go looking for it—it came looking for me. I just saw a young girl finding a proton pack in a barn and walking into a wheat field and getting the courage to use it. I didn’t know who they were yet. Eventually, I realized that this was kind of my story: I was scared too of this project, and then I developed the courage to look into my father’s legacy and pick something up. What’s the key to maintaining that original vibe? Jason: You know, a director’s job is to make an audience feel something. And fortunately for this film, I got to work with the masters of every art form who were all huge fans of the original and interested in answering that same question. So whether you were a special effects wizard or you’re an actor who was a Ghostbuster for multiple Halloweens, we were all in it together and bringing our own personal relationships with the movie to this film. Ivan: What’s lovely about what Jason has done here is that he’s created a whole new group of very young actors who have a real chemistry together. They have the alchemy of being together that really make you want to watch the movie and get moved by it and want to see it again. Didn’t you insert some secret “Easter eggs” in the film for the longtime fans? Jason: Yes, there are literally hundreds starting from the very opening of the film when you hear an ondes martenot, which is an old French keyboard. The woman who performed it in the original also did it for the new film from Abbey Road Studios in London. You see a lot of props that reference the first one too, like a Nestle Crunch bar. And we’re back to the original slime recipe! Ivan, at 75, you’ve amassed some amazingly proud moments. Is seeing your son take the baton No. 1 on your list? Ivan (tearing up): Yes. I didn’t think I’d ever see this. I get emotional just thinking about it. Next, Paul Rudd, From Anchorman to Ant-Man, on His New Role as Ghostbuster in Ghostbusters: Afterlife
