Dan Aykroyd defends all-female ‘Ghostbusters’ remake
Comedy icon Dan Aykroyd has defended the all-female remake of his classic movie Ghostbusters despite the negative reception it received when it was initially released in 2016.
The movie, starring Kristen Wiig, Melissa McCarthy, Kate McKinnon and Leslie Jones, was the first iteration of the film franchise to be released since the originals, and the minds behind the production decided to add a new twist by making the paranormal investigators an all-female team.
Given all four women are renowned comic actors, there was no reason for people to expect the picture to fall flat, but the stark change from the original set of movies was criticised by some audience members, which Aykroyd believes to be unwarranted. Furthermore, Jones also received death threats and racial abuse due to her participation.
Despite the negative reaction from some, however, Aykroyd, who has a cameo in the movie, has defended it, saying it’s a film “that you want to watch again.” He told People, “I liked the movie [director] Paul Feig made with those spectacular women.”
While Aykroyd explained he was frustrated with how much the movie cost, the actor concluded he was a fan of the finished product. “I liked that film,” he said, “I thought that the villain at the end was great. I loved so much of it. And of course, Kate McKinnon and Leslie Jones and Melissa McCarthy and Kristen Wiig, you’re never going to do better than that.”
Aykroyd finished by adding: “I go on the record as saying I’m so proud to have been able to license that movie and have a hand and a part in it, and I’m fully supportive of it, and I don’t besmirch it at all,” he said. “I think it works really great amongst all the ones that have been made.”
His opinions contrast with fellow Ghostbuster Ernie Hudson, who previously labelled the all-female reboot as “disappointing.” His issues arose not necessarily from the movie’s execution but from the fact it exists in the first place. He said, “Look, I’m a fan of [director] Paul Feig so I have nothing negative about him to say. Other than: I don’t quite understand why you do a reboot, you know what I mean? Just make another movie.”
The actor continued, “Fans were really invested in the story and the characters, and I think it was disappointing. I enjoyed the movie, but I think it wasn’t what fans were hoping for.”
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