The Original Ghostbusters Script Was A Very Different Movie

The Original Ghostbusters Script Was A Very Different Movie

The Ghostbusters script created many challenges for the filmmakers early in production. Here are some of the changes that they had to make.

You Are Reading :[thien_display_title]

The Original Ghostbusters Script Was A Very Different Movie

Before its cinematic release in 1984, the original script for Ghostbusters was written to be very different from the story that audiences are familiar with. Dan Aykroyd wrote the initial draft with his imagination totally uninhibited, emphasizing more strongly the science-fiction elements of the story and making the supernatural characters more prevalent. Such a starkly different environment sounds uncanny in a film that has become so well-known, but the fact is that the earliest version of the script almost appeared as though it was for an entirely separate movie.

Ghostbusters has become a staple in popular culture for exuding creative spirit, whether that be through its humorous writing, its outlandish creature designs, or even the very concept of battling the paranormal. With a legacy that has lasted for nearly 40 years, the success of the original Ghostbusters seems like lightning in a bottle, with the right people working together at the right time. However, the script first had to be thoroughly rewritten before it was deemed ready for filming.

Aykroyd’s original script faced complications that, had they been unaddressed, would have prevented the movie from being made. The premise involved himself and John Belushi as a pair of professional ghost-hunters fighting off paranormal foes across various locations in outer space, but Belushi passed away before the script was finished and a monumental amount of special effects would have been required for creating the settings and the eerie creatures that populated them. Director Ivan Reitman described in an interview (via Vanity Fair) that the script “was impossible to make but… had brilliant ideas in it,” and so he, Aykroyd, and Harold Ramis made extensive revisions to the script. At that time, cutting content from the Ghostbusters script was a necessity as much as it was a creative decision.

See also  The 15 Most Heartbreaking Supernatural Episodes

New York was used as the setting partially due to technical challenges, but also because the filmmakers recognized that it would make the supernatural elements feel more special. The metropolitan backdrop may sound less exciting, but the contrast of the paranormal with the ordinary makes certain scenes more effective. Slimer’s debut in the Sedgewick Hotel is effective because his appearance is so bizarre and surreal in design that he easily becomes the focus when he is onscreen. Using more otherworldly environments would likely have distracted the audience from the ghosts themselves because, rather than one character standing out, every character would stand out.

Perhaps the most significant change to the script was the movie’s tone. Aykroyd’s original draft was expressly darker than the final version, but the performances for the eponymous Ghostbusters created ample humor for balancing the tone amid the horror and action sequences. A darker version of Ghostbusters is not impossible to imagine, but the comedy is such a significant part of the film’s identity that it would likely have been a more serious movie. The premise of four people battling ghosts while having little idea of how to go about it generates comedy purely for the absurdity of it, as the movie creates tension when needed yet never forgets to bring the audience laughter.

Though many unique ideas had to be removed from the original Ghostbusters script, the finished version speaks volumes for the creative drive of the people who made it. With a new installment around the corner, perhaps some of Dan Aykroyd’s early ideas may be revisited or even inspire entirely new ones. Only time will tell what new plans await the Ghostbusters in the story’s newest chapter.

See also  Invasion What Is The Parasite Aneesha Finds

Link Source : https://screenrant.com/ghostbusters-original-screenplay-idea-dan-aykroyd-differences/

Movies -