[tylergfoster]

Well, if your friend can't snag one I definitely recommend going for the Regal. Honestly, the nearest Regal is 10 minutes away, so if your friend can't get the AMC one and you want the Regal one, I'd be happy to pick one up for you, just PayPal me the cost of the trap and shipping.

[MovieFacts]

Although coming in just under the gross of the previous one has to sting a bit, I don't think this is a death knell or anything for the current iteration of Ghostbusters, yet. For one, with the somewhat limited amount of family-friendly movie content out there, maybe this one will be able to leg it out a bit and end up grossing more than Afterlife. I would be more hopeful for this if WOM was better, but I have to say it seems like the wildly mixed reactions aren't limited to the critics.

Honestly, my guess is that Murray is not actually that expensive given he's not in it that much, but Murray is also not an actor where I've heard much discussion of how high his price tag actually is. Maybe the filmmakers will be agreeable to returning to an Afterlife budget for a third and final chapter with the Spengler crew, and then maybe a TV show or something.

I don't think it's that unreasonable to believe that Sony might think there's something to be done with the 2016 timeline, but I definitely think it's long odds. Whatever it is, I as a long-time 2016 defender still do not want it to intersect, crossover, or connect with the 1984 timeline at all. I still think that just undermines the new characters, and I'm tired of multiverse stuff. But I'd be thrilled if they did an animated movie with those characters or something (not that I'm holding my breath).

I've read that the average box office revenue is down from last year, so I'm sure Sony will take that into consideration. 'Afterlife' came out post-pandemic and was the first canonical Ghostbusters movie featuring the original cast in nearly 40 years, directed by a Reitman. Naturally, it generated a lot of hype. But I understand your point about the importance of word-of-mouth. I'm also hopeful about the box office performance for FE.

Regarding Bill Murray—and I can't believe I'm saying this, especially on a Ghostbusters fan forum where I'm ready to be shot down—I don't want him in the next film. I understand that franchise films are sometimes made by committee to secure approval, so he may have to be in it, but I think he has checked out. There were definitely moments in both Afterlife and Frozen Empire that captured shades of Venkman, but there were also scenes where it seemed like his heart wasn't in the performance. I've come across opinions stating, "Bill Murray stole every scene in FE," but I think that is nonsense. He was outshone by Dan Aykroyd and Ernie Hudson. Can you imagine uttering those words in the 80's?

I agree with you about the multiverse point. By the way, 'Answer The Call' utilised New York better as a character than 'Frozen Empire' did. This might largely be due to budgetary reasons, but still, it felt more real in ATC.

I stick by what I said earlier in the thread, if Sony don't green light another sequel due to box office, I can see Ghostbusters movies moving to Netflix akin to the Knives Out franchise.

[Psycho Werekitsune]

Well, if your friend can't snag one I definitely recommend going for the Regal. Honestly, the nearest Regal is 10 minutes away, so if your friend can't get the AMC one and you want the Regal one, I'd be happy to pick one up for you, just PayPal me the cost of the trap and shipping.

I already managed to bag a Regal one online, thankfully. Thanks for the offer though!

[K_Centric0001]

A fun thought experiment.If you are a Sony exec what do you make of this?

1.Bring back the 2016 cast for a crossover since that movie opened a bit higher?
2.End the OGs cameos since the older cast(especially Bill Murray) must have a hefty salary cost?
3.Reboot again?
4.Continue with the new cast only,with a lower budget and new writers/directors?
5.Shelve everything and try an animated movie(hey Spiderverse,Mario and that Cat in the Boots flick.worked)

I haven’t seen the movie yet. Hopefully next week I will, but if the box office makes less or equal to Afterlife I think Sony will be disappointed. I don’t think it’s got anything to do with the OC being involved. Infact nostalgia logic says it should be the complete opposite.

I think they went easy on afterlife because the film was trying to a smaller movie in some ways and the Original cast were not used in a lot of the marketing for that movie. But they hoped if they went for something bigger and more exciting that it could perhaps make the same money as the 2016 movie. But it ain’t looking likely so far.

Best guess is that they will end up moving to an animated reboot next. It’s different and apparently, audiences don’t seem to care about the original ghostbusters continuity as much as they care about its nostalgic legacy. Which is weird as anything.

[Alphagaia]

GB: 9,5 (used to be a 10, but some small things bug me nowadays)
The rest: 7
Frozen Empire: ???? (I'll let you know in a week or two.)

Special mention: videogame: 9,5


So far the good ones featured lions.

[tylergfoster]

If the box office makes less or equal to Afterlife I think Sony will be disappointed. I don’t think it’s got anything to do with the OC being involved.

Well, the real boon for Sony with Ghostbusters has honestly almost never been the movies. It's been the merchandising, since a good 20 years of the timeline didn't have any movies in it. It's also possible (and this same argument was made when trying to gild the lily on the 2016 grosses) that Afterlife (and now Frozen Empire) are moving so much ancillary merchandise for the studio that the movies doing okay in theaters (and then also decently on home video) is good enough. If they rake in an additional $100m in pure profit every time they release something, then the movie is probably worth it to them, especially if they keep budgets in check.

[K_Centric0001]

If the box office makes less or equal to Afterlife I think Sony will be disappointed. I don’t think it’s got anything to do with the OC being involved.

Well, the real boon for Sony with Ghostbusters has honestly almost never been the movies. It's been the merchandising, since a good 20 years of the timeline didn't have any movies in it. It's also possible (and this same argument was made when trying to gild the lily on the 2016 grosses) that Afterlife (and now Frozen Empire) are moving so much ancillary merchandise for the studio that the movies doing okay in theaters (and then also decently on home video) is good enough. If they rake in an additional $100m in pure profit every time they release something, then the movie is probably worth it to them, especially if they keep budgets in check.

Frozen Empire needs to go upwards at the box office for Sony to feel good about this franchise. Even if its a little bit, it would show the potential to build something. i think if this doesn't do better than the last, its just gonna seem like a lost cause. Not enough people are rushing to see ghostbusters.

Thats why I think animation is next. Because if something fails in live action you go animated next and give it some stylish visuals.

[Bison256]

Red letter media liked the movie overall

https://m.youtube.com/watch?v=8pgmrrrupu4

[Alphagaia]

Red letter media liked the movie overall

https://m.youtube.com/watch?v=8pgmrrrupu4

I guess? With 'liked' meaning it was a dry fart instead of the wet fart Afterlife was, and the franchise should have stopped after the first movie.

[mrmichaelt]

Thats why I think animation is next. Because if something fails in live action you go animated next and give it some stylish visuals.

When they first announced this movie, they announced the comic, animated movie, and animated series so presumably the plan was always for the animated movie to come next in theaters any way.

I guess? With 'liked' meaning it was a dry fart instead of the wet fart Afterlife was, and the franchise should have stopped after the first movie.

Mckenna Grace had a rebuttal about that the other day but I haven't watched it yet.

[Ectopher]

Red letter media liked the movie overall

https://m.youtube.com/watch?v=8pgmrrrupu4

I had the weirdest feeling they would. My guess is they say its messy, disorganised, but sorta fun and harmless overall? Might watch later, but their Afterlife review was so bitter and painful to watch.

[Ectopher]

On a totally different note, has anybody heard of a "making of" book for Frozen Empire? So much talent and hard-work went into production, it'd be awesome to see. Plus, get a better look at the jackets, new packs, the Ecto, Garraka concept art, etc.

[Nadrarak]

THR posted an interview with Gil Kenan. Confirms the next movie will still star Phoebe and the question of Oscar, Dana, and Louis came up:
https://www.hollywoodreporter.com/movie ... 235857537/

Gil labels himself a superfan but... about Ray Parker Jr.s song being used:

That means the song also exists in the fictional world as well. I just rewatched all the movies and I don’t recall it happening, but has the song ever been played diegetically?

I think this was the first, but it didn’t feel to me like it was breaking some sort of space-time continuum, because with Ghostbusters II, it became clear that the Ghostbusters were aware of the brand and were not above exploiting it for branding, marketing, franchising.

He even mentions Ghostbusters II but doesn't remember the song being played at the birthday party?

[ShandorMiningCo]

On a totally different note, has anybody heard of a "making of" book for Frozen Empire? So much talent and hard-work went into production, it'd be awesome to see. Plus, get a better look at the jackets, new packs, the Ecto, Garraka concept art, etc.

The costume designer posted some amazing close up shots of the new coats on Insta: https://www.instagram.com/p/C41GgVwvqUl ... dremV0Yg== She also put up some photos of the Engineer suits in a follow up post.

I'd love to see a book like that too, I'm dying to get a clear shot of Egon's original containment unit designs that Winston pulls out. Anybody seen these floating around online anywhere?

[Bison256]

Dude, it's been out 2 days, wait for the blu ray!

[deadderek]

Dude, it's been out 2 days, wait for the blu ray!

Better yet: the 4k.

[deadderek]

So Variety and others are reporting a $45 million dollar opening weekend. Nice.

[tylergfoster]

So Variety and others are reporting a $45 million dollar opening weekend. Nice.

More importantly, although Deadline does not provide a number, they say Sony did a "thrifty" marketing spend on this one, so maybe the target for this one is less than 3x the $100m price tag.

In general, their writeup is pretty enthusiastic compared to The Hollywood Reporter and Variety's pieces, noting that the franchise pushed past the $1b mark and also that the movie got a decent spike on Saturday from families (and that some exhibitors were afraid the film would tank with something like $30m based on sluggish presales).

https://deadline.com/2024/03/box-office ... 235865730/

https://www.hollywoodreporter.com/movie ... 235858952/

https://variety.com/2024/film/box-offic ... 235950537/

All that said, the real question is whether or not the movie holds up in the second week. If it has a good hold and then sticks around for awhile, I think that will be very encouraging for a third movie with the Spengler clan.

[Alphagaia]

Meanwhile, blowjob ghost has let herself go.

[BrianReilly]

All that said, the real question is whether or not the movie holds up in the second week. If it has a good hold and then sticks around for awhile, I think that will be very encouraging for a third movie with the Spengler clan.

Yeah, it’ll be interesting to see how it holds up against Godzilla x Kong. Domestically those movies pull in about the same as the Ghostbusters films, but internationally they are way bigger.

I know there’s good reasons for it, but it’s a shame Frozen Empire wasn’t released a few weeks earlier when there was basically zero competition.

[13th Floor]

All that said, the real question is whether or not the movie holds up in the second week. If it has a good hold and then sticks around for awhile, I think that will be very encouraging for a third movie with the Spengler clan.

Yeah, it’ll be interesting to see how it holds up against Godzilla x Kong. Domestically those movies pull in about the same as the Ghostbusters films, but internationally they are way bigger.

I know there’s good reasons for it, but it’s a shame Frozen Empire wasn’t released a few weeks earlier when there was basically zero competition.

If the movie holds well till Godzilla hits then Sony may think "If we spend smart and put it in the right window it might do good business"
Being squished by family friendly Kung Fu Panda,Dune's still strong presence and Godzilla?With a negative critical reception as well?So many things stacked against this movie.

[MovieFacts]

So Variety and others are reporting a $45 million dollar opening weekend. Nice.

More importantly, although Deadline does not provide a number, they say Sony did a "thrifty" marketing spend on this one, so maybe the target for this one is less than 3x the $100m price tag.

All that said, the real question is whether or not the movie holds up in the second week. If it has a good hold and then sticks around for awhile, I think that will be very encouraging for a third movie with the Spengler clan.

Thrifty? This is purely anecdotal but it really seems like FE has been advertised everywhere. I've seen three different posters, numerous trailers, TV spots, elaborate cinema standees to Times Square billboards.

It will take a dent next week from Godzilla X Kong, but I'm more interested in what it does on week 3 and week 4 as I believe it's spring break in the US soon, and we have a two week Easter holiday in the UK. That means lots of families are going to the cinema.

It should be an interesting few weeks ahead.

[ZedR]

We're going to be missing the Chinese market, which will be a chunk of change. But I'm sure Sony has that factored in

[tylergfoster]

Thrifty? This is purely anecdotal but it really seems like FE has been advertised everywhere. I've seen three different posters, numerous trailers, TV spots, elaborate cinema standees to Times Square billboards.

True, but just to throw out an example, I remember them sending the 2016 crew all over the world, whereas it seems like Sony's rollout for this one was just the NYC and London premieres, and I have no idea how many cast and crew members turned up for London. As the expected ad spend for a $100m movie is another $100m, they still could've spent $75m and earned the description "thrifty."

We're going to be missing the Chinese market, which will be a chunk of change. But I'm sure Sony has that factored in

Worth noting that the 2016 movie (and I would assume Afterlife) did open in Hong Kong, just not the rest of China. But it's also true that the bulk of Chinese business would be the rest of the country.

It sounds like overseas grosses for this one were kinda underwhelming, but it also sounds like Ghostbusters has always been tepidly-received overseas.

[timeware]

It sounds like overseas grosses for this one were kinda underwhelming, but it also sounds like Ghostbusters has always been tepidly-received overseas.

Underwhelming maybe, but 66 million opening weekend isn't too shabby.

https://www.boxofficepro.com/weekend-bo ... g-grosses/

[BrianReilly]

A good sign that it hit the higher end of predictions, but also keep in mind that neither GB2016 nor Afterlife’s opening weekend numbers are adjusted for inflation.

Frozen Empire has pulled in an estimated $45M domestically in its opening weekend.

GB2016 pulled in $46M, adjusted that’s $59M.

Afterlife pulled in $44M, adjusted that’s $50M.

Frozen Empire has a tough road to a sequel.

[tylergfoster]

Underwhelming maybe, but 66 million opening weekend isn't too shabby.

Just remember: the rule of thumb is 3x the production budget. If Frozen Empire is starting with $66m and has $234m to go, and we can expect $66m to drop by anywhere from 30% to 50%+ next weekend, then it is honestly kind of shabby. It'd be much more easy to be enthusiastic if we were looking at a $100m+ WW opening.

Another thing that's relevant is how many countries are still left to open and what those grosses might add to the total. My personal ideal number with a good strong hold would be in the realm of $250m. That's less than the 3x, but it'd be easy to imagine that it cleared that with merch and then future home video grosses. I think it would be possible to get another one made at $75-$80m with that kind of return.

[13th Floor]

The animated show/movie is already underway so there's at least that to look foward to.
I hope Jason and Gil invite someone else to direct now that they both did it and bring some comedy heavy hitters to write.
FE trailers were frustrating because they didn't have really good jokes to put in there,and they pivoted to tease the spookiness only on the final trailers and tv spots.
People who like watching a comedy didn't care and people who like spookyness didn't care.You're left with the adventure movie audience that are split with Dune,Kungfu Panda and Godzilla.
Specificity to tone is the golden ticket.FE didn't stand out much to certain audiences

[timeware]

If they really want to add the scare factor they need Sam Raimi to direct.

[mrmichaelt]

Gil labels himself a superfan but... about Ray Parker Jr.s song being used:

He even mentions Ghostbusters II but doesn't remember the song being played at the birthday party?

Shrug. Throw the guy in jail for forgetting one detail during one interview. Give him the benefit of the doubt he remembered the party scene the next day.