There’s something strange in the neighborhood… of Weymouth, Massachusetts.
The Southfield Highlands apartment complex has been abandoned, leaving only boarded-up buildings with smashed windows. A gnarled, goateed mannequin lies in a parking lot. We’re no longer standing an hour outside of Boston; we’re in Times Square, and all hell is breaking loose -- literally. Glowing ghosts carrying colonial muskets, ghosts in zoot suits, ghosts on stilts, ghosts with top hats and twirling canes have flooded the streets, and the only thing between us and them are four women decked out in tan jumpsuits and proton packs.
“I think the amount of action and the level of it in this is going to surprise people,” said Melissa McCarthy on the Ghostbusters set, after being dangled upside down by a ghost (really a wire) and tossed around. In another take, Kristen Wiig flies into the air only to land unscathed and shoot a ghost, while another sequence sees her obliterate an encroaching horde with a grenade. Elsewhere, Kate McKinnon is getting knocked around until Leslie Jones emerges and shouts, “It’s chipping time!”
If there’s one thing to take away from our time in the thick of the paranormal war, it’s that this is not the chick flick the Internet haters have made it out to be. Fandango joined the four newly minted Ghostbusters on the set to find out more about their characters and what this reboot is all about.
Abby Yates (Melissa McCarthy)
Abby’s whole life has been about ghosts. It’s what brought her together with her high school BFF, Erin, and she grew up to make a career out of it — even if she’s a pariah in the scientific community.
“My character has never lost her passion and belief in [the paranormal],” said McCarthy. “So she’s full throttle. I believe in it. I speak about it. This is what I do with my life.”
As with the other ladies, McCarthy brings an improv background to the film, but there’s not as much riffing as one might think. She explained: “Some scenes it comes out a lot and then others, especially the action stuff -- there’s so much on timing to keep everybody safe that I don’t want to be the one who’s like, ‘And another thing…’ while somebody else gets clocked.”
One such moment happened during a subway chase scene. The actress described, “I gave [one ghost] a couple good shoves because he was coming at us really fast on a wire.” Costar Kristen Wiig added, “He was glowing with blue lights, and his teeth… there was one take where he went faster than we were running!”
“She really lost it,” McCarthy said with a laugh.
Erin Gilbert (Kristen Wiig)
Erin went the route of academia after parting ways with Abby after high school. “I became a professor, and I sort of leave [paranormal studies] behind,” said Wiig, explaining that her character hides this part of her life from her fellow educators. But then something — presumably ghostly — happens to bring these friends back together after losing touch for years.
McCarthy attributes Erin’s withdrawal to “wanting to maybe not be on the fringe and made fun of as much, wanting to be more legit.” Wiig continued, “I think deep down she believes but she doesn’t want anyone to know, especially at work.”
Writer Katie Dippold said, “Kristen’s character was pretty serious, but then Kristen Wiig doing it, she just adds this fun that only she can do.”
Jillian Holtzmann (Kate McKinnon)
“Her name is Jillian Holtzmann, but she only goes by Holtzmann,” said McKinnon. “She’s the machine expert of the gang and she is a crazy genius, ‘crazy’ being the operative word, and she has really cool clothes.” From her massive hair swoop, to her bug-eyed glasses, to her necklace, which is the letter “U” with a screw through it (get it?!), she’s hard to miss.
Holtzmann has worked with Abby for a while already before Erin comes back into the picture, and she creates most of the gear the new Ghostbusters use. The part seems tailor-made for McKinnon, who made a name for herself through similarly eccentric personas on SNL.
“I think the character is like me, and that is kind of upsetting,” she said, “because she’s weird and I think it just basically is me.” Added Dippold, "She just thinks outside the box even in social norms."
For McKinnon, who’s been reading physics books since she was young, the most enjoyable part was watching the characters develop the tech. “It’s actually a huge part of it. This story is of these women coming together and also evolving the technology to be able to go on this mission. Watching the gadgets evolve throughout the movie is a big part of it and is for me the most fun.”
Patty Tolan (Leslie Jones)
Holtzmann’s “kindred spirit” comes in the form of Patty Tolan, and it may not be a coincidence that Leslie Jones currently improvs alongside McKinnon on SNL. “Kate has literally become my bitch,” said Jones. “That is, my bitch for life. Like, she is my heart and soul.”
Patty jives best with the tech genius. “They’re both kind of crazy,” Jones continued, adding that Patty is “the normal person who comes into this situation. All of them already know about ghosts and gadgets and paranormal. She’s the person that would come into the group and have a regular human experience.”
Patty is working for the MTA as a ticket taker when she becomes one of the first people in the city to spot a ghost. Jones explained, “She came in and reported it to [the Ghostbusters] and decided that they were hella cool and that she wanted to be a part of that club. MTA was easy to leave.”
At least the MTA gave the Ghostbusters their uniforms. “Those jumpsuits come supposedly from the MTA room,” said costume designer Jeffrey Kurland. “Patty tricks them out and they become what you eventually see.”
Feig described Jones’ comedic stylings as “a comedy hurricane” — and he knew he needed her for Ghostbusters. “That was the hardest thing about putting this cast together … I needed four very distinct personalities that complemented each other, didn’t step on each other and brought four different energies to the table. When I saw Leslie for the first time I was just like, ‘That’s the thing I need.’”
Kevin (Chris Hemsworth)
Replacing Janine, Annie Potts' sassy secretary in the original films, is Kevin, the scientists’ devilishly handsome hipster receptionist who even gets to wear the Ghostbusters uniform at one point. The biggest, though unintentional, link between he and Janine are the glasses. Kurland said, “Chris wanted to wear the glasses. He wanted to create a character that was different from his persona, and we thought, well, the glasses would be great for that.”
You might not expect him to be one of the funniest actors in the film, but Chris Hemsworth had the cast rolling with laughter. “Chris Hemsworth made us break maybe more than anybody, which seems like, don’tcha have enough?” said McCarthy. “Haven’t you been given two scoops to begin with? But he is a really, really funny guy and one of the best improvisers I’ve ever worked with.”
“Let’s just take a moment and give Chris his due right now. Goddamn. That’s a good-looking man,” Jones joked. “He’s too normal for how good looking he is.”
Rowan
So you’ve seen the four new Ghostbusters, you’ve seen some of the ghosts, you’ve seen the sexy secretary, and you’ve even seen Slimer in the trailers. What about the villain? That part of the film is still very hush-hush as the cast and crew were nervous about spoiling the film. But, we at least have a name: Rowan.
“Our villain, so to speak, is like a very smart, genius-type himself,” said Dippold. “[The Ghostbusters are] very smart people. They’re scientists, and there’s someone who’s equivalent to them. Whereas they want to do good, he does not.” The film’s first trailer provided more detail when Wiig’s Erin explained that someone is using a device to enhance paranormal activity.
Does that mean there will be no Zuul? Dippold said with a laugh, “It’s a new story.”
For more on a few Easter eggs we can expect to see, see our interview with director Paul Feig. For more character details from the ladies themselves, go here.
Ghostbusters will hit theaters on July 15.
