When it was announced early last year that Rick Moranis was planning to unretire from acting so that he could reprise his role as Wayne Szalinski in the developing Honey, I Shrunk The Kids legacy sequel, the news was met with both celebration and a touch of confusion. While fans were happy to hear that Moranis was returning to the big screen for the developing Disney project, many wondered why he didn't make himself available for the upcoming Ghostbusters: Afterlife.
As it turns out, it may end up being a case of audiences getting their cake and eating it too, as new comments from legendary Ghostbuster Ernie Hudson suggest that Moranis popping up in the 2021 movie may not be totally off the table.
Hudson was specifically asked about the possibility of seeing a cameo by Rick Moranis during a recent interview with Living Life Fearless, it it's hard not to notice in his response that there isn't any kind of flat denial, and instead what actually sounds like a Ghostbusters: Afterlife tease. Said the actor,
I think the studios probably want to hold that one. I love Rick. But yeah, I’ll let them share that.
Rick Moranis starred in both of the original Ghostbusters movies playing Louis Tully – the excessively nerdy accountant who is initially introduced to the story because he is a neighbor of Sigourney Weaver's Dana Barrett. In the first movie he notably ends up getting possessed by the demon Vinz Clortho a.k.a. The Keymaster, and in Ghostbusters II he is employed by the titular team as the company's in-house accountant, and also suits up for the final battle – though he ultimately doesn't really contribute much to the fight against Vigo The Carpathian.
The actor has not been in a live-action movie since 1997's Honey, We Shrunk Ourselves, as he chose to step away from Hollywood so that he could focus on raising his two children (his wife, Ann Belsky, passed away in 1991). He was previously approached to do a cameo in the Paul Feig-directed Ghostbusters that was released in 2016, but he turned it down saying that he wasn't interested in doing one day of work on a project related to a film he did 30 years prior.
That in mind, is it possible that Ghostbusters: Afterlife presented him with a different opportunity? There is every chance that we are reading into Ernie Hudson's comments way too much, but if Rick Moranis didn't want to do the last Ghostbusters movie because the part was too minor, does that mean it's possible that he will have a more substantial role to play in the Jason Reitman-directed sequel?
We don't expect that a secret part played by Rick Moranis is something that Sony is going to reveal prior to the release of Ghostbusters: Afterlife, but that just means that the real answer to the question is going to be maintained as a big screen surprise. That in mind, you'll be able to check out the new film – starring Carrie Coon, Finn Wolfhard, Mckenna Grace, and Paul Rudd – when it arrives in theaters on November 11.
