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‘Ghostbusters 3’ Unlikely As Reviews, Box Office Agree On Paul Feig’s Remake

By Patrick Frye
Published on: 07:07 PST, Aug 10, 2016

Ghostbusters 3 is now very unlikely, going the way of a Fantastic Four sequel and The Amazing Spider-Man 3. The 2016 Ghostbusters remake’s reviews and box office have proven that the film just isn’t drawing enough of an audience.

This news could spark a whole new war between feminists and their supposedly misogynist rivals. From almost the moment it was announced, the all-female Ghostbusters was being criticized by men who felt that Dan Aykroyd’s original was untouchable. Feminists, however, felt that Melissa McCarthy could finally become a household name alongside Kristen Wiig, Kate McKinnon, and Leslie Jones.

Sadly, reviews have mostly pointed to how the humor was lost in a film that scrambled to figure out what it was doing. In all fairness, the original wasn’t really that well-received either, but it stood the test of time with special effects that still hold up today. What could have been Ghostbusters 3 if it had given the original actors their original roles back just didn’t have the charm and effortless wit of the Harold Ramis and Bill Murray blockbuster.

The Chicago Sun-Times gave a list of what was wrong with the movie, including bad acting, a forgettable villain, and a terrible script. That forgettable villain eventually possesses the body of a major member of the cast, whose initial bumbling and utter stupidity seemed to do nothing but show how incompetent men are.

One of the highlights of the film was Kate McKinnon, whose presence just drew the eye every time with her enthusiastic and genuinely funny antics.

After the Ghostbusters trailer had hit YouTube and became the most relatively hated video ever made, some blamed misogynist trolls while others pointed out how racist Leslie Jones’ character seemed to be. Sadly, she was the second best part of the movie.

What truly indicates that Ghostbusters 3 won’t be happening is the box office. The film took over $300 million to make and advertise, and so far the return has been a disappointing less than $180 million. With further revenue possibly coming from the pending releases in Mexico, Japan, France, and other markets, it’s unlikely to break even.

If it had a Chinese release, it might have made it like Transformers: Age of Extinction did. However, China has a tendency to not allow movies based on the supernatural. This means the box office could drop off just after $225 million, about $70 million shy of breaking even and earning a profit. Sony has stated that theme park attractions and merchandise will make up for it, however.

Previously, producers had stated that a sequel was inevitable, but now it seems they are changing their minds. Sony hasn’t said whether they are officially canning sequels up to and including Ghostbusters 3, but they have expressed an interest in making an animated series out of it, much like Dan Aykroyd original did. The Real Ghostbusters, while actually the second one on TV, went on to become its own success that holds up to this day.

This was the revelation made by the accused misogynist video reviewer James Rolfe, better known as the Angry Video Game Nerd. Of course, the accusation was made after he’d refused to watch – and therefore review – the 2016 remake of Ghostbusters.

Box office analyst Jeff Bock has officially stated that “Ghostbusters is on ice until further notice. I just can’t fathom the creative talents behind it — Feig, McCarthy, Wiig, [et cetera] — slogging out another one when the reception to the first one was so mediocre.”

Perhaps if there is a Ghostbusters 3, it will probably be a straight-to-Netflix film like Ricky Gervais’ Special Correspondents and Adam Sandler’s latest two films, The Ridiculous Six and The Do-Over.

[Image via Sony Pictures]

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