Paul Rudd & Carrie Coon Celebrate Ghostbusters: Frozen Empire Director’s Passion For Franchise

The Ghostbusters are back, and New York is once again facing a massive threat in Ghostbusters: Frozen Empire. When an ancient artifact unleashes an unimaginable evil that could set off a second ice age, Ghostbusters from across generations will need to work together. They must save the city and those they love — not to mention the whole world — as they face off against a wildly dangerous group of ghosts.

Ghostbusters: Frozen Empire brings back the heroes of Afterlife, with Egon’s descendants once again being played by Carrie Coon, Finn Wolfhard, and Mckenna Grace. Paul Rudd also returns, having gone from their teacher to part of their family despite not yet reaching stepfather status. Original Ghostbusters stars Bill Murray, Dan Aykroyd, Ernie Hudson, and Annie Potts reprise their roles in a stacked cast that includes Kumail Nanjiani and Patton Oswalt. Gil Kenan brings a fresh take to the franchise as he helms the newest installment as director and co-writer alongside producer Jason Reitman.

Screen Rant interviewed Carrie Coon and Paul Rudd, who discussed how Ghostbusters: Frozen Empire explores family, what it felt like to be in the iconic firehouse, and the experience of playing a single mother within the paranormal world. Rudd also reflected on how Gary is adjusting to becoming a stepdad and the enthusiasm Kenan brought to the movie.

Continuing The Legacy Of The Ghostbusters With Frozen Empire

Screen Rant: I love Ghostbusters: Frozen Empire. It is incredible. Carrie, what were some of the themes that jumped out at you that you connected with in Jason and Gil’s story for Ghostbusters: Frozen Empire?

Carrie Coon: Well, I love that Jason and Gil have continued to focus on the family. Certainly the central theme for us is about can Paul Rudd be a stepdad? How Gary Grooberson is fitting into the world. I love that Callie’s problems, even though she’s ghostbusting, are real world problems. She’s a single mom. It’s hard to make ends meet.

They’re living in New York. She’s got teenagers, that always feels really real and grounded to me. Then one of the things I think is especially fun for the fans, it’s outside of theme, is when we introduced new technology for the fan base. So for me, piloting the drone trap, getting to wear a proton pack at all, all that stuff is always really thrilling for us to share too.

Paul, as a stepdad, I completely relate to Gary as a character in this film, there’s a fine line between being a kid’s best friend and being an authority figure. Can you talk about Gary’s struggle to balance the relationship with the kids?

Paul Rudd: Sure. Well, he’s only in really a couple of years of knowing them. He’s moved across the country with them, but he’s not officially a stepdad. We’re not married, and it’s tough to know how far you’re supposed to go as a disciplinarian, as an authority figure, as a friend.

So I know I spoke, not having this experience personally, but I certainly talked with people involved in the film who have, and they say it’s tough, and it makes sense. How harsh should I be in this situation? What am I supposed to do? I think Gary is just figuring that out and being helped along by Carrie’s character, Callie.

The Spenglers now have a place that they can call home, the iconic Ghostbusters firehouse. How does living at the firehouse and balancing the family’s work life affect the Spenglers in Ghostbusters: Frozen Empire?

Carrie Coon: It’s almost like any household, there’s a real, I think that a lot of comedy comes out of that juxtaposition. I love sliding down a fireplace with laundry, to Gary making tacos in the kitchen. I just think that that’s a great space for comedy to kind of emerge. I love that you just see Callie on the couch on her phone.

We just really inhabit that space. It’s not totally in ours. It’s kind of precarious. We’re there at the grace of Winston Zeddemore, who’s kind of continuing the legacy of the Ghostbusters, continuing the research. We certainly don’t own that firehouse, so we can easily be out on our butts, which is part of the plot actually.

Ghostbusters: Frozen Empire Director Gil Kenan Is “A Lover Of The Franchise”

Paul, Gil Kenan steps into the director’s chair for the first time in the franchise. What did his directing style add to Ghostbusters: Frozen Empire?

Paul Rudd: Well, a real enthusiasm. I mean, he’s a lover of the franchise. He co-wrote the script with Jason, and he also co-wrote Afterlife. So he certainly has a knowledge of it. He’s kind of lived it for many, many years. It’s nice when the guy who’s steering the ship is enthusiastic, knowledgeable, and you feel like you can trust him. We all did. He’s a great guy. He is a great writer. He is a great director. It was nice just kind of hanging out with him every day on set.

Carrie, given the rich history of the Ghostbusters franchise, what aspects of Callie’s character were you most excited to explore in Ghostbusters: Frozen Empire?

Carrie Coon: In some ways, I guess she’s kind of a new archetype to bring to the story. We haven’t had the single mom vibe yet, and so I’m happy to represent that for all the moms out there. I feel like she’s a really real mom, like we were talking about, the circumstances she’s struggling with are really real. I love that she’s maybe not the best mom.

I think in movies sometimes that can be glossed over, or you can sort of see the mom with rose-colored glasses. In this case, she’s a really flawed person. I always appreciate when I see flawed people in a movie. I think Callie brings her haplessness to the story, and I think that’s fun.

About Ghostbusters: Frozen Empire

In Ghostbusters: Frozen Empire, the Spengler family decide to leave Summerville, Oklahoma and go back to where it all started – the iconic New York City firehouse – and help the original Ghostbusters, who’ve developed a top-secret research lab to take busting ghosts to the next level! But when the discovery of an ancient artifact unleashes an evil force, Ghostbusters new and old must join forces to protect their home and save the world from a second Ice Age.

Check out our other Ghostbusters: Frozen Empire interviews here:

• Finn Wolfhard & McKenna Grace
• Ernie Hudson
• Gil Kenan