Jason Reitman's Ghostbusters: Afterlife is now playing in theaters (you can check out our review here), and THR caught up with the eldest daughter of the late Harold Ramis (Egon Spengler) to get her thoughts on the long-awaited sequel and a certain moment towards the end of the film which has proved to be highly divisive.
Spoilers follow.
During Afterlife's climactic battle, the spirit of Egon returns to help his granddaughter Phoebe (McKenna Grace) and his former teammates (Bill Murray, Dan Aykroyd and Ernie Hudson) vanquish Gozer the Destroyer. It's a touching moment, but utilizing CGI to "resurrect" actors for posthumous appearances tends to be controversial. Fortunately, Violet Ramis Stiel knew what to expect before sitting down to watch the movie having already read the script.
“He was so careful to get it right, to really honor the early films and everyone who was in them, but also to make something for now and the future,” Stiel said of Reitman, whom she's known since they were kids. “Maybe he is the only person who could do that. He is the physical bridge.”
“One thing that is timely about the movie is yes, it is a comedy, but it is also about loss and grief. And we are all dealing with that,” she continued. “It was surreal. There are so many parallels to real life, but it is just a movie. And it is not actually him. It is a character. Jason, smartly, focused on capturing the Egon character and not necessarily my dad. I feel like it really worked in that way. Ultimately, it leaves us with that feeling: The people we love are always with us. They don’t go away.”
Have you been to see Ghostbusters: Afterlife yet? If so, how do you think Egon's return was handled? Drop us a comment down below.
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