As though out of nowhere, the Ghostbusters Afterlife trailer appeared in early December 2019, confirming the UK release date and giving us our first glimpse of the film. You can check out the story synopsis below, along with the trailer, our parents guide and the latest on the age rating to find out more about the upcoming reboot sequel.
There’s a lot of history for the 2021 return to the series to live up to with the cult status of the original two films and the disappointment surrounding the previous 2016 reboot of the franchise. The good news is that the trailer looks promising with a story that follows on from the events of Ghostbusters II, thirty years after the defeat of Vigo the Carpathian and the end of mass spectral events in the greater Tri-State area.
AdvertisementHopefully, it lives up to the potential of the trailer and the memory of the original films, but in all fairness it’s a big ask. The mix of more serious threat with the inevitable comedy is good to see in the trailer, as this was missing from the 2016 flick, so we’ve definitely got our fingers crossed and dipped in positively-charged slime.
Cast
A fresh-faced young cast has been brought together for Ghostbusters Afterlife, led by Finn Wolfhard of Stranger Things and It Chapter I fame. He plays Egon Spengler’s grandson Trevor alongside McKenna Grace (young Carol Danvers in Captain Marvel) as his younger sister Phoebe.
AdvertisementThey’ll be joined by Paul Rudd (Avengers Endgame) as Trevor’s new teacher, Carrie Coon (Fargo) as his mum and Bokeem Woodbine (Fargo, Spider-Man Homecoming) as the town sheriff. If that isn’t enough, we’ll also have Dan Akroyd, Ernie Hudson and Bill Murray back as Ray, Peter and Winston at some point along the line. Plus a cameo for Sigourney Weaver.
Ghostbusters Afterlife UK release date
The Ghostbusters Afterlife UK release date had been scheduled for Friday the 10th July 2020, which would have given it a chance of summer blockbuster glory. However, the challenges of the COVID pandemic have pushed it back and it will now arrive on the big screen on the 18th November 2021, so you can put it into your calendar for an extended Halloween. It’s currently scheduled to be out in cinemas in the USA and Canada a day later, so there shouldn’t be too much discussion about what happens to avoid.
The other big film release in the UK that weekend is Will Smith’s Kind Richard, but we’re expecting Afterlife to take the box office number one spot. As the date got closer, Joaquin Phoenix drama C’mon C’mon was also announced for the 19th November 2021 , but it’ll be surprising if anything will be able to compete with what is fast becoming the real deal Ghostbusters 3.
AdvertisementWith cinema date locked in for November now, it should come out on DVD, Blu-ray and digital in the UK in March 2022, just in time for Easter.
Age rating and parents guide
The British Board of Film Classification (BBFC) confirmed the UK age rating for the film to be 12A with just a couple of weeks to go before the release date. It’s in line with what we had in our initial initial parents guide, with the original Ghostbusters having an age rating of 12A also, despite the second film being a PG. The 2016 reboot was a 12, so it should be in that ball bark again. If that isn’t enough, the US certification has been confirmed to be PG13, so that’s another good indicator for the UK rating.
The reality is that most modern-day live action films comparable to Ghostbusters Afterlife like Jumanji 2 receive a 12 age rating, so we’re expecting the same here. Looking at the trailer, our parents guide notes include moderate threat and the the potential for infrequent crude references, but little in the way of actual bad language or violence.
There will, however, be a fair few ghosts that need busting, and while the initial trailer only teased a couple of the friendlier ones there will be at least one or two akin to either the librarian or Goza the Gozarian from Ghostbusters. This means a few jump scares to be aware of. If you want to find out more, you can read our take on on the Afterlife villain, as well as Ivo Shandor with the links at the bottom of the page.
You can follow us on Twitter to see more news and updates on Ghostbusters Afterlife in the build-up to the release, plus the official Twitter page at https://twitter.com/Ghostbusters.
Story synopsis
While you might have expected a new Ghostbusters film to carry on the New York tradition, Afterlife takes a dive down left field and moves the spooksville location out to the American Mid-West. The Spengler grand-kids and their single mum arrive in the small town and move into the old family home only to discover that their grandad’s legacy has both its upsides and it’s downs.
On the bright side they find out that their grandad is a legend with lots of cool spook-cooking tech to play with. However, on the down side, somehow the area has become a haven for ghostly goings on and you can’t help but suspect that Egon’s old research has got something to do with it all.
You can check out our 2021 films section to see other big releases that are on the way this year, or visit the Ghostbusters website to see more on the film at www.ghostbusters.com.
Ghostbusters Afterlife trailer
The trailer for the film has been pretty well received compared to the panning that the 2016 reboot received when its first look came out. It doesn’t give too much away in terms of the threat that the Spenglers will face, which is a good thing, but it shows off more than enough cool elements to set it up well for the release date in autumn 2021.
Subsequent trailers have shown off more of the ghosts from the film, including a sneak peak at Gozer the Gozerian and her mutts, Zuul the Gatekeeper and Vinz Clortho the Keymaster. You can also see more of the mini Stay Puft Marshmallow Men and what looks like a big ghost wolf of some sort.
