We really are living in a new world. The speed of social media can not only debunk a false rumor almost immediately, it can also pump enough positive communal energy into the idea to not only make what wasn’t real at breakfast into a possibility by lunch, but, if enough breaks fall the right way, you might even get a look at some finished product by dinner.
Case in point: Max Landis and his link to the long-gestating Ghostbusters 3 project.
Considering the Chronicle screenwriter’s nearly life-long connection to the GB franchise via dad John, it wasn’t a huge surprise when Hollywood journalist Nikki Finke reported Tuesday that Landis was doing a script polish on the current Ghostbusters 3 idea.
Problem is, it wasn’t true. Landis almost immediately took to his Twitter handle to debunk the rumor.
Hey guys, it pains me to say this, but you know I pride myself on being straight up person. Zero truth to the Ghostbusters report.
— Max Landis (@Uptomyknees) June 18, 2014
But that didn’t mean Landis didn’t have ideas on what Ghostbusters 3 should look like. So the next day, he was so jazzed about his concept that he had to share his pre-titles sequence…on Twitter, of course.
Haha a bunch of people asking what my Ghostbusters 3 pitch would’ve been. I never had a full one, just a skeleton I’ve goofed around with.
— Max Landis (@Uptomyknees) June 18, 2014
My Ghostbusters 3 began in the 1920s with Ivo Shandor murdering a gluttonous associate to protect his cult after he has a moral objection.
— Max Landis (@Uptomyknees) June 18, 2014
Shandor tells the overweight man that nothing can stop the coming of Gozer; first, the gate will open in 1984, then again twenty years later
— Max Landis (@Uptomyknees) June 18, 2014
The fat man, who now has all the details of Shandor’s plans, threatens to go to the police, and Shandor poisons him. It’s scary, but…
— Max Landis (@Uptomyknees) June 18, 2014
As Shandor escapes, we see that we’re in the Sedgewick Hotel, and that the guy we just saw die… …Is Slimer. Cue theme. Show title.
— Max Landis (@Uptomyknees) June 18, 2014
The tease got so much positive response that Landis came back a few hours later to lay out the rest of his movie.
Thanks for all the kind words on the Ghostbusters opening (and the weird amount of people who don’t understand the concept of “opening”)
— Max Landis (@Uptomyknees) June 18, 2014
My full movie concerns several new teams (focusing on one), grown from the Ghostbusters Franchise which is now global (and going bankrupt)
— Max Landis (@Uptomyknees) June 18, 2014
Ghostbusters have become a parody of themselves, there are barely twelve ghosts caught a year. People have forgotten what happened in NYC.
— Max Landis (@Uptomyknees) June 18, 2014
Egon passed away, Venkman lives on an island, Winston retired rich. Only Ray Stantz is left in charge, and he’s a terrible business man.
— Max Landis (@Uptomyknees) June 18, 2014
In an effort to bring back business, an obsessed team whose station has been shut down attempts to summon a minor ghost… Mistake. Gozer.
— Max Landis (@Uptomyknees) June 18, 2014
It’s up to our hero team to stop the bad team, reunite the fractured franchises, and save our dimension from a very pissed off demigod.
— Max Landis (@Uptomyknees) June 18, 2014
It’s all very meta (creatively bankrupt Ghostbusters, no one wants the new team, the bad team are slick Michael Bay-versions of the GBs)…
— Max Landis (@Uptomyknees) June 18, 2014
…But you keep the action, comedy, and emotion sincere. Witty, bluecollar guys who are the last people you’d want saving the world.
— Max Landis (@Uptomyknees) June 18, 2014
And I think the teams would be by modern-comedy clique; a Parks/Rec team, a Rogen/Franco team, a Kroll/Key/Peele team…
— Max Landis (@Uptomyknees) June 19, 2014
I don’t know. I’ve thought a lot about Ghostbusters 3. But I’m kind of close on the Akroyd/Ramis side of things so it always felt weird.
— Max Landis (@Uptomyknees) June 19, 2014
So happy to see this got some people pumped, unsurprised by the usual weird amount of hate. That’s enough from me about this, I think.
— Max Landis (@Uptomyknees) June 19, 2014
So, a respected screenwriter essentially threw his fairly cohesive film idea out into the universe…what does it all mean? Probably not much. As pointed out by Crave movie site /Film, the script Sony will eventually greenlight for GB3 will probably be some Frankenstein version of takes already written by screenwriters Etan Cohen, Lee Eisenberg and Gene Stupnitsky.
But there’s something to be said for just having some good ideas. And with Ghostbusters fans already geeking out on concepts like a Slimer origin, the return of Gozer and bloated Bay-ified international Ghostbuster squads bursting with meta-possibilities, just having those ideas out in the ether could help them find their way into the script that eventually gets filmed.
Either way, nice work, Max…
This Week in Film News – Week Ending 06/20/14
This Week in Film News - Week Ending 6/20/14
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Breaking: Rian Johnson Will Write and Direct Star Wars: Episode VIII
The director of Looper will also be writing Star Wars: Episode IX, but will he direct that one too?
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Report: Matt Damon Returning for Bourne 5
No way... Seriously?!?
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Hulk Smashes, DC Superhero and Scooby-Doo Movies on Most Craved
Superhero movie news goes supernova with Warner Bros.’ plans for Wonder Woman, Shazam and Aquaman. Plus: another Hulk movie and Scooby-Doo!
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Rage: Exclusive Home Invasion Clip
They're kidnapping Nicolas Cage's daughter. Big mistake.
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Friday the 13th Will Return… in 3D
Does that mean Paramount has abandoned the found footage idea?
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Max Landis’ Ghostbusters 3 Idea? It’s Awesome!
The noted screenwriter and son of John unleashes his GB3 sequel idea on Twitter…and it’s so freakin’ good.
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Doctor Strange Conjures Up a New Screenwriter
The screenwriter of Prometheus has been hired to pen Marvel’s first supernatural superhero movie.
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Solo Hulk Movie Back in Discussions at Marvel?
Mark Ruffalo seems to think a Jade Jaws standalone flick is more likely now than ever before.
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Scooby-Doo Live-Action Reboot in the Works at Warner Bros.
Ten years after the last Scooby-Doo movie, Warner Bros. has hired a new screenwriter to start over from scratch.
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Jurassic World, Terminator, Insurgent and More at the 2014 Licensing Expo
Your first look at promotional art and statues from the hottest upcoming movies, including Fast & Furious 7, Batman V Superman, Jurassic World and more.
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The Equalizer: Set Visit with Denzel Washington
Denzel Washington and director Antoine Fuqua explain why their version of The Equalizer is nothing like the TV series on the set outside Boston, MA.
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The Expendables 3: New Trailer, New Cast
The latest trailer for the all-star action threequel showcases Wesley Snipes, Mel Gibson, Harrison Ford, Antonio Banderas, Kellan Lutz and Ronda Rousey.
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Final Resident Evil Film Has a Conclusive Title
Yep... This is it... The title says so...
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Guardians Of The Galaxy Australian Trailer Premieres
Marvel’s latest superheroes prepare for Australian cinema release this August.
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Frank Grillo Cautiously Optimistic for Crossbones Return in Captain America 3
The actor behind the mask says he’s all ready for a Captain America 3 rematch.
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Dracula Untold: The First Poster is Kinda Like Batman Begins
Universal apparently wants you to think their big reboot of a bat-centric character is kind of like that OTHER big reboot of a bat-centric character.
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Transformers: Age of Extinction – Exclusive Dinobots TV Spot!
Check out some new shots of the Dinobots in action!
