Zombieland 2 Is Reportedly Bringing Back Bill Murray, Plus Another Ghostbuster

Zombie Bill Murray in 2009's Zombieland
(Image credit: (Columbia Pictures))

There are few zombie-slashers as hilarious as 2009's Zombieland. Oh, and remember when Columbus and the gang ran into Bill Murray as himself? In the upcoming sequel, set to begin filming in January, it looks like Murray is rejoining the cast, and this time he's bringing a fellow Ghostbuster along with him.

According to a report by Geeks WorldWide, both Bill Murray and Dan Aykroyd have joined the cast of Zombieland 2 as fictional versions of themselves. We're undead.

It's currently unknown just how large their roles are in the sequel, which will reunite the main cast -- including Woody Harrelson, Emma Stone, Jesse Eisenberg, and Abigail Breslin -- 10 years after the dark comedy was released. If this GWW report pans out, Bill Murray and Dan Aykroyd are welcome additions to the highly-anticipated sequel that is thankfully finally happening after years of talk about the project.

In Zombieland, Columbus and friends ran into Bill Murray while on their bloody voyage through a zombie-filled America. When they find him, Murray isn't a zombie, but convincingly dressed as one so he can blend in and still go out and do what he pleases without being bothered.

However, Bill Murray decides to play a practical joke on Jesse Eisenberg's Columbus and Abigail Breslin's Little Rock by using his acting chops to scare them into thinking he's a zombie coming toward them. Columbus instantly fires his gun at Murray, leading to a hilarious moment of his last words admitting his regret for playing Garfield the Cat, which gets Emma Stone's Wichita inappropriately laughing.

Considering the events of Zombieland, I'd guess Bill Murray is coming back in the sequel as an actual zombie and will be joined by his Ghostbusters co-star Dan Aykroyd. It's sure to be a hilarious moment -- here's hoping it's more than a cameo and Murray is the main villain looking to exact revenge on his murderer.

While this bit of information might have been more effective as a surprise, it's still exciting that Zombieland 2 is reportedly continuing an effective gag from the first film.

The upcoming sequel will be directed again by Ruben Fleischer, who recently found massive success for his Spider-Man spinoff, Venom. Zombieland 2 will also be penned by the screenwriters of the first film, Paul Wernick and Rhett Reese, who have recently also written both the Deadpool movies, along with Wonder Woman 1984 writer Dave Callaham.

Zombieland 2 will also star Set It Up's Zoey Deutch in an unknown new role. The sequel is said to revolve around Columbus, Tallahassee, and Wichita attempting to rescue Little Rock from a dangerous threat amidst a world of more-evolved zombies.

The 2009 movie was a success at the box office as it earned $102 million on a $23 million budget. Now that each of the main stars have become huge Hollywood stars in the past 10 years, Zombieland 2 will likely destroy those numbers when it comes to theaters on October 11, 2019. Here's what else is coming to the big screen in 2019.

Sarah El-Mahmoud
Staff Writer

Sarah El-Mahmoud has been with CinemaBlend since 2018 after graduating from Cal State Fullerton with a degree in Journalism. In college, she was the Managing Editor of the award-winning college paper, The Daily Titan, where she specialized in writing/editing long-form features, profiles and arts & entertainment coverage, including her first run-in with movie reporting, with a phone interview with Guillermo del Toro for Best Picture winner, The Shape of Water. Now she's into covering YA television and movies, and plenty of horror. Word webslinger. All her writing should be read in Sarah Connor’s Terminator 2 voice over.