Ghostbusters: Afterlife Trailer Finds Paul Rudd Meeting Tiny Marshmallow Men

Ghostbusters: Afterlife has a new trailer. On Tuesday, Sony Pictures unveiled a second full-length trailer for the next Ghostbusters movie — a direct sequel to the original two entries from the ‘80s — that finds two kids in small-town Oklahoma, Phoebe (McKenna Grace, from Gifted) and Trevor (Finn Wolfhard, from Stranger Things) discovering their connection to the original Ghostbusters: their grandfather was one of them. Jason Reitman (Juno) is the director on Ghostbusters: Afterlife, who carries the original film's legacy behind the screen too — he is the son of Ghostbusters director Ivan Reitman.

“You're a great mum,” local teacher Mr. Grooberson (Paul Rudd) tells Dr. Egon Spengler's daughter Callie (Carrie Coon) who worriedly replies: “I don't know, I'm fine with Trevor, but with Phoebe, she really keeps me on the outside.” Grooberson tells her that's normal, especially given that Phoebe is an “awkward, nerdy kid.” Callie hopes that moving into a new home will be a fresh opportunity for Phoebe, and she's hoping that her kid will get into some trouble. Well, be careful what you wish for. Soon after in the new Ghosbusters: Afterlife trailer, Phoebe finds a ghost trap hidden under the floors.

Elsewhere, Trevor admits to a friend that they are here in Summerville because they are completely broke, and the only thing they had left was “this creepy old farmhouse in the middle of nowhere.” It's for a reason, Trevor. Digging deeper into the new home, they find the disused Ectomobile — which surprises Phoebe: “You went with the station wagon?” Trevor notes that it was the only one that still had an engine. Strange things start happening soon after in the Ghostbusters: Afterlife trailer, with daily earthquakes in Summerville, a town with no fault lines. “Maybe it's the apocalypse,” Phoebe says.

And that's the only start of it. A light seemingly moves by itself shocking Callie, and Grooberson finds (tiny) Stay-Puft Marshmallow Men coming to life in the supermarket. Before long, a strange eerie orange-coloured cloud appears over town, shooting down lightning bolts. “Something's coming,” Phoebe warns, just as the road begins cracking in Summerville, and all kinds of strange beasts appear out of nowhere. “It's like The Walking Dead,” an unseen character says. The new Ghostbusters: Afterlife trailer ends with the kids in Ectomobile chasing after ghosts.

Paul Rudd as Mr. Grooberson in Ghostbusters: Afterlife
Photo Credit: Sony Pictures

There's a tease for the return of the original characters — Bill Murray's Dr. Peter Venkman, Dan Aykroyd's Dr. Raymond Stantz, and Ernie Hudson's Dr. Winston Zeddemore have roles — after the Ghostbusters: Afterlife title card drops. Seeing a YouTube video of the Ghostbusters gang, Grooberson and Phoebe seemingly ring up the onscreen number. A man picks up a red phone on the other side of the line and says: “We're closed.” I mean, if you're closed, you could have just not picked up the phone, but okay.

In addition to Trevor and Phoebe, the new teenage Ghostbusters gang includes Phoebe's classmate Podcast (Logan Kim) who is spotted at the very end, and Trevor's classmate Lucky (Celeste O'Connor) who is seen briefly in the trailer when she asks him why they moved to Summerville. Celeste's addition to the squad was confirmed not in the new Ghostbusters: Afterlife trailer, but rather thanks to the tie-in toy collection unveiled by Hasbro on Tuesday. The Ghostbusters: Afterlife cast also includes Sigourney Weaver, Annie Potts, Oliver Cooper, Bokeem Woodbine, Marlon Kazadi, Sydney Mae Diaz, and Tracy Letts.

Ghostbusters: Afterlife is out November 11 in cinemas worldwide, including India. It was set to release in July last year, but Sony Pictures was forced to delay it thrice due to the ongoing COVID-19 pandemic.