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OG Ghostbuster Ernie Hudson: "Bill Murray is a genius"

Ernie Hudson is back as original ghostbuster Winton Zeddemore in Ghostbusters: Frozen Empire and he says he can’t believe the franchise is still going a full forty years after the first movie.

In the film, which also stars Bill Murray and Dan Ackroyd alongside Paul Rudd and Carrie Coon, Zeddemore is now a very successful businessman who has opened up a new secret ghostbusting laboratory where the crew investigate an ancient artefact with deadly powers.

Speaking to RTÉ Entertainment via Zoom, the 78-year-old actor says, "I knew the first movie would open well and that it would be well received back in 1984 but I had no idea it would just last in the way it has in people’s consciousness and now they embraced it, started making their own jumpsuits and backpacks and started turning their cars into Ecto-mobiles.

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"And that went on for ten, fifteen years, twenty years and that was amazing and now forty years later people are still enjoying it with their kids and grandkids."

The new movie sees Gary Grooberson (Paul Rudd) and the Spengler family (Carrie Coon as Callie, Finn Wolfhard as Trevor, and Mckenna Grace as Phoebe) settling back into their New York fire station HQ and gunning their cool Cadillac Miller-Meteor Sentinel ambulance around Gotham kicking ghost ass.

Ghostbusters: Frozen Empire could be called classic Ghostbusters - it has a determinedly old school look following the perhaps overly reverential Ghostbusters: Afterlife in 2021.

"I think Afterlife was a lot of years after the original movies and there was nothing happening with Ghostbusters and Afterlife was a re-introduction," Hudson says.

"For me seeing Bill Murray and Dan Ackroyd back in their jumpsuits was almost an emotional moment but Frozen Empire takes it to a different level.

"Now we’re in the process of ghostbusting and you see us back in New York and back in the firehouse. I think that’s what fans have been hoping for and the exciting part for me is seeing the new cast, who are really talented, and I was just inspired by that."

Murray is back - albeit it briefly - as Peter Venkman and even if his screen time is limited he remains quite a presence.

"There is no-one like Bill Murray," Hudson says. "Honestly, he’s a genius. He comes out with stuff that I can’t even imagine.

"I adore Bill Murray and Dan Aykroyd is just so creative. It was just an unusual mix of people when we did the first one with Harold Ramis and Ivan Reitman and now all these many years later Bill is still Bill Murray."

Annie Potts also makes a return but despite a clamour from fans, there is no sign of Rick Moranis returning as Louis Tully.

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"I’m sure Sony Studios and the filmmakers have done everything imaginable to convince him to come back to Ghostbusters," Hudson says.

"If I thought me showing up at his house would make a difference, I’d be there. I’m such a huge fan, he’s wonderful. The first Ghostbusters wouldn’t be the movie without Rick."

Michigan native Hudson is a busy man. He also stars as no-nonsense career military man in the recent reboot of Quantum Leap, which just finished season two.

He previously starred in Netflix's drama series Grace and Frankie and also stars in and executive produces The Family Business.

His other television credits include Modern Family, The Secret Life of the American Teenager, Law & Order, LA’s Finest and HBO’s acclaimed prison drama Oz.

His film credits include Miss Congeniality, The Crow, and The Hand that Rocks the Cradle.

But he is probably best known for his recurring role in the Ghostbusters franchise, having appeared in four of the movies.

You can tell he’s a big fan of the series but he was less keen on 2016’s all-female version of Ghostbusters, which received quite a backlash from overzealous fans.

"It was disappointing in a way because I know the filmmakers had the best intentions," Hudson says. "First off can I say I’m a big fan of Paul Feig and I though the movie was very entertaining but I don’ think they should have done a reboot. It was thirty years later - just make your own movie.

"To make a reboot just means making the same movie over again with females wasn’t the best idea but thankfully we’re passed that and I think Frozen Empire is more in line with what people think Ghostbusters should be."

Ghostbusters: Frozen Empire is in cinemas now

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