Ecto-1 Still Runs in First Ghostbusters: Afterlife Trailer

You can see it in full at the bottom of the page. After much speculation and reports, Ghostbusters: Afterlife brings back to life the iconic Ectomobile, the ambulance-hearse combination built on a 1959 Cadillac professional chassis, found abandoned in a country barn, under a tarp. It may be rusted and forgotten but, guess what, it still runs and it still does that which it was designed for: catch ghosts.

Unlike the first two films, which were set in busy Manhattan, Afterlife has a decidedly rural setting. There’s Paul Rudd as a teacher, and Carrie Coon, Finn Wolfhard and Mckenna Grace as a family who just moved in. They’re the typical outsiders and they’re also those who will discover the secret hidden underground, which causes the earth to shake uncontrollably in an area where there is no tectonic movement.

“As the family arrives at an old farm, they begin to discover their connection to the original Ghostbusters,” director Jason Reitman says of the storyline. “Trevor and Phoebe are about to find out who their grandfather was and whether they’re ready to pick up the proton pack themselves.”

Spoiler alert: if you know your Ghostbusters trivia, you won’t have that much trouble figuring out who the kids’ grandfather is, or their connection to the Ecto-1.

Because this is the first official trailer and the movie doesn’t drop until the summer of 2020, footage connecting the film to the original is scarce. There are a couple of glorious shots of the Ectomobile in a field and speeding through the small town while Phoebe is trying to blast a runaway ghost, but the studio is saving the best for later.

Also then, you can expect footage of original stars Bill Murray, Dan Aykroyd, and Ernie Hudson, all of whom are expected to reprise their roles.

Ghostbusters: Afterlife is the fourth Ghostbusters film, but it bears no connection to the 2016 all-female remake. Hopefully, it won’t have anything in common with its box office performance or critical reception either.