Dan Aykroyd, Bill Murray and Ernie Hudson reunite ahead of Ghostbusters: Afterlife premiere

They’re back on the big screen after COVID-19 delays halted the release of a highly-anticipated reunion.

Dan Aykroyd, Bill Murray and Ernie Hudson proved to be ready for action as they caught up on The Tonight Show Starring Jimmy Fallon on Monday night ahead of the new Ghostbusters flick.

The trio of actors  praised director Jason Reitman for his Ghostbuster: Afterlife script nearly 40 years after the first supernatural crimefighting film first debuted. 

Who ya gonna call? Dan Aykroyd, Bill Murray and Ernie Hudson proved to be ready for action as they caught up on The Tonight Show Starring Jimmy Fallon on Monday night ahead of the new Ghostbusters flick.

‘Jason Reitman wrote a great script, so full of heart, going right back to the first two movies and its DNA,’ Aykroyd, 69, told Fallon. ‘We just read it and thought, “This is the right time and this is the right way to do it.’ 

Murray starred as Dr. Peter Venkman, while Hudson played Dr. Winston Zeddemore, Dan portrayed Dr. Raymond Stantz and the late Harold Ramis starred as Egon Spengler.  

Bill noted Jason’s special connection to the project as he grew up on set as his father directed the first film in 1984. 

Memories: The trio of actors praised director Jason Reitman for his Ghostbuster: Afterlife script nearly 40 years after the first supernatural crimefighting film first debuted

Blast from the past: Murray starred as Dr. Peter Venkman, while Hudson played Dr. Winston Zeddemore, Dan portrayed Dr. Raymond Stantz and the late Harold Ramis starred as Egon Spengler; seen in 1984

‘Jason is the son of the original director, Ivan Reitman,’ Murray said. ‘He had his own take on — because he grew up as a child of the Ghostbusters, sort of in a way. He had something he thought would work as a good story and we all agreed that he got it.’

Murray joked that Jason was ‘a pain in the a**’ as a child on set, while Aykroyd added: ‘He was directing back then.’

Dan and Bill knew each other before Ghostbusters production began, and Hudson was new to the group, but he told Fallon that it was an easy group to join. 

‘Jason Reitman wrote a great script, so full of heart, going right back to the first two movies and its DNA,’ Aykroyd, 69, told Fallon. ‘We just read it and thought, “This is the right time and this is the right way to do it’

‘I’m always looking for a job, so I was happy to be working,’ Hudson said. ‘They were always very welcoming’

‘I’m always looking for a job, so I was happy to be working,’ Hudson said. ‘They were always very welcoming.’ 

Ghostbusters: Afterlife stars Paul Rudd, Carrie Coon and Finn Wolfhard, and is set to be released on Friday, Nov. 19.

The film was originally scheduled to be released in July 2020, but was pushed back four times due to the COVID-19 pandemic.