Bill Murray ain’t afraid of no ghosts. The legendary actor and comedian is finally confirmed to be reprising his role as Peter Venkman in next year’s Ghostbusters 3.
Other original stars Dan Aykroyd, Sigourney Weaver, Annie Potts, and Ernie Hudson had already been confirmed to return for the film over the last several months, but the question of Murray’s involvement remained elusively — and predictably — unanswered. But now we finally have positive confirmation that Murray will appear in the film, and it comes from Aykroyd himself.
“We’ve shot our part — myself, Murray, Sigourney, and Annie Potts,” Akroyd told The Greg Hill Show, according to io9. “And it was really exciting working on this new idea and new take on the story which [director Jason Reitman], who’s a really incredible, fine filmmaker, came up with.”
This is a big relief because, as many Ghostbusters fans can attest, Murray was the main reason for the lengthy delay in getting Ghostbusters 3 made. The actor had resisted calls from Aykroyd and others to reprise his role for decades, telling David Letterman in 2010 that the idea of another Ghostbusters sequel was his “nightmare.” Then, following the death of Harold Ramis in 2014 and the subsequent reboot attempt in 2016, it seemed as if another Ghostbusters film with the original cast that continued the original story would never be made.
But now, here we are, with all of the main cast set to return for Ghostbusters 3 save for the late Ramis and the retired Rick Moranis. It’s unknown just how central of a role the original cast will play in the new film, as the main plot is said to revolve around a mother and her two children, but we’re just happy to know that their legacy will continue in some way. And we’re especially happy to learn that Dr. Peter Venkman will be a part of it.
