Friday, January 30, 2015

An Open Letter to Paul Feig, Regarding Ghostbusters 2016



Dear Paul Feig,

Please reconsider making the new Ghostbusters movie a reboot rather than a sequel. Your all-female cast is terrific, but rather than erase the legacy of the previous film with a reboot, the characters could easily be the daughters of the original team. Imagine that they are now accomplished scientists themselves, who decide to investigate the disappearance of their fathers upon discovering a hidden cache of old notes and equipment while clearing out the old firehouse.

"Is that thing safe?"
"It's a 30-year old nuclear accelerator dad built in an abandoned firehouse... what could go wrong?"
"Cool. I'm gonna step out for a smoke..."

The script practically writes itself. Having Kristin Wiig and Co. be the next generation rather than rebooted characters allows the original cast be in the movie as little or as much as they like, helps explain the absence of the late, great Harold Ramis, and gives the characters, and the actors portraying them, an extra layer of emotional nuance that will only serve to enhance the comedy/horror aspects of the movie.

I am actually a big fan of your past work and think you have a great talent for comedy and off-beat timing that fits perfectly with the Ghostbusters franchise. But everyone, even the greats, will occasionally start down the wrong path, and that seems to be the case here in thinking that a reboot is appropriate.

Please contact me for a better screenplay than you currently have. I can have it to you in two weeks.

Sincerely,

Shyaporn Theerakulstit
Actually Old Enough to Have Seen Ghostbusters in a Theater

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