Why Ernie Hudson Thinks Women Ghostbusters Is A Terrible Idea

So far, the reaction to an all-female Ghostbusters has been mixed, at best. Some love the idea of hysterical actresses suiting up for a ghost-busting horror comedy. Others are opposed to calling it Ghostbusters if it isn’t going to have any ties to the original two films. But what do the actual Ghostbusters believe? This may shock you.

Ernie Hudson worked the PR trail on behalf of Ghostbusters a while back, and talked to anyone that he could about a third installment in the series. Now that we know that the next Ghostbusters movie is going to be a reboot, though, Hudson has told the UK Telegraph that he’s against the idea… and he thinks fans will oppose it, as well. He said:

If it has nothing to do with the other two movies, and it's all female, then why are you calling it Ghostbusters? I love females. I hope that if they go that way, at least they'll be funny, and if they're not funny at least hopefully it'll be sexy. I love the idea of including women, I think that's great. But all-female, I think, would be a bad idea. I don't think the fans want to see that."

I kind of want to chastise Ernie Hudson for this close-minded reaction to Paul Feig’s Ghostbusters, but a lot of comments under the story on our site reflected these sentiments. Why call it Ghostbusters if it won’t trace back to the first films? Why not be its own thing? The answer, naturally, is because the name Ghostbusters carries a significant amount of marketing power, and a lot of people will check the new movie out just to see how it lives up to (or fails) the legacy of the first two movies. And later in the interview, Hudson softens his stance – while also showing that his comments were more than a little self-serving:

Maybe it will come out and be the most amazing thing, but in my opinion I think it would be wrong to do another movie that didn't include the guys. And that didn't include me!"

There it is. The truth. But you know that Ernie Hudson will be in a theater, watching the next Ghostbusters when it comes out, because he’s going to be curious to see how they treated his baby. He’s going to want to see how his legacy has survived.

We know that Bill Murray is all for a female Ghostbusters movie. And we now know that Ernie Hudson’s kind of opposed. I can’t wait for Dan Aykroyd to comment on the new film. His is the next shoe to drop. Care to wager what his reaction might be?

Sean O'Connell
Managing Editor

Sean O’Connell is a journalist and CinemaBlend’s Managing Editor. Having been with the site since 2011, Sean interviewed myriad directors, actors and producers, and created ReelBlend, which he proudly cohosts with Jake Hamilton and Kevin McCarthy. And he's the author of RELEASE THE SNYDER CUT, the Spider-Man history book WITH GREAT POWER, and an upcoming book about Bruce Willis.