The upcoming all-female reboot film of Ghostbusters seems to have a segment of the potential moviegoing audience vexed by the very idea of its gender-swapping reconceptualization. Perceptions, however, are not currently based on the film’s plot, since next to nothing has been revealed. However, in a recent interview, director, Paul Feig seems to have divulged a key concept in the dynamic of the film’s team of estrogen-centric seekers of spooks, revealing that Kriten Wiig’s character who will be the protagonist whose eyes we see the story unfold through.
In an interview with IGN, Paul Feig, the director of next year’s Ghostbusters reboot, sat down to discuss how the dynamic of the uber-talented cast of comedians reflects the structure of the script. However, when posed with a question about the film’s focus, Feig would confirm that the new Ghostbusters team will place focus on the character played by Kristen Wiig. He confirmed that the project is a team movie, but explained that the Bridesmaids star will serve as the important point of view character. Or as he put it,
It is an ensemble, but at the same time, you need the one person that brings you into the group.
With the cast consisting of Kristen Wiig, Melissa McCarthy, Leslie Jones and Kate McKinnon, there certainly seemed to be frontrunners regarding the identity of the central character, simply based on prominence and popularity. Not shortchanging McCarthy’s role, though, Feig also added that his lead in the upcoming Spy will find herself in a leadership position within the narrative of Ghostbusters. Said the director,
Melissa [McCarthy] is sort of the leader of the group. But, everybody will be equal.
This is interesting revelation about the potential group dynamic. Yet, at the same time, it’s also not too surprising. Ensemble films, especially comedies, do tend to focus on a single, identifiable main character who, in essence, serves as the glue holding the group together. Additionally, the character often tends to be the one pursuing the film’s primary romantic relationship, and sets the tone of the film’s overall spirit. In the original 1984 Ghostbusters movie, that character was clearly Bill Murray’s Peter Venkman. In that film, his romantic pursuit of Sigourney Weaver’s Dana Barrett was a driving force in the perennial classic, which also ended up central to the plot in the devastating denouement of the story with her possession by demons - which had potentially apocalyptic (ultimately marshmallow-flowing) implications.
Likewise, it is sounding like the Ghostbusters reboot will essentially be a movie primarily starring Kristen Wiig (pictured above) with a prominently-featured talented supporting cast. Interestingly enough, with Wiig’s character possibly being the designated Peter Venkman archetype, the idea of Melissa McCarthy’s character being "the leader" of the group, could imply that she’s the designated version of Harold Ramis’ Egon Spengler. As the driving scientific force behind the group, Egon was notoriously stiff, geeky and over-analytical. The idea of Melissa McCarthy playing a similar role, rather than her tradition of portraying inept, unstable bumblers actually sounds kind of exciting.
A potential new multi-film Ghostbusters franchise continuity looks to launch with the all-female supernatural romp on July 22, 2016. The film could end up being a launching point for not only direct sequels, but a reportedly all-male Ghostbusters reboot, which could add names like Channing Tatum and Chris Pratt to the mix, possibly sometime in 2017.
