Ghostbusters: Frozen Empire chilled theaters across the world when it debuted on March 22nd of this year. The fifth Ghostbusters film and the fourth entry into the current canon meshes the new with the old. Reuniting the young cast of 2021’s Ghostbusters: Afterlife with the aged heroes of the original films, they come together to take on an icy new threat. Among all of the questions the film raises, the biggest one remains: do audiences still care about this franchise?
Released to little fanfare, crushing reviews, and a general lack of enthusiasm from most audience members, Frozen Empire’s hype train doesn’t appear to have many passengers on board. Is Ghostbusters still a profitable franchise? Or is it time to hang up the proton packs for good? Let’s discuss!
How much money has Frozen Empire made?
Despite the lack of excitement surrounding its release, Frozen Empire has managed to make back a good chunk of change. As of the time of writing, it has grossed $188 million worldwide on a budget of $100 million. Most would look at these numbers as a win all things considered. But looking closer reveals a troubling reality for the Ghostbusters franchise as a whole.
Ghostbusters is owned by Columbia Pictures, a subsidiary of Sony Pictures Motion Picture Group. Examining their biggest currently running franchises reveals that Ghostbusters is among their top intellectual properties (IPs). It stands alongside Jumanji, Escape Room, Men in Black, Spider-Verse, The Karate Kid, Hotel Transylvania, and Sony’s much maligned Spider-Man Universe (which gave us such gems as Morbius and Madame Web).
While some of these franchises are beloved, half of them have not seen a new film release in five years. Furthermore, most of their current franchises have not had the longevity of the Ghostbusters franchise. Proving to be among their longest running and most culturally recognizable IPs, a profit of only $100 million just isn’t going to cut it.
Frozen Empire could certainly cross the $200 million box office milestone before its theatrical run is over. But it will very likely remain the lowest grossing entry on a budget that is the second highest of the franchise. That doesn’t exactly instill confidence in the future of the Ghostbusters brand as a whole.
What are audiences and critics saying?
Less than ideal box office earnings are an issue, but sometimes good word of mouth is enough to boost ticket sales. Unfortunately for Frozen Empire, the chatter surrounding the film has ranged from icy cold to lukewarm.
Critics have spoken, many of their words unkind (none more entertainingly so than Mark Kermode in one of his trademark rants). With a Metatcritic score of 46/100, many critics have taken issue with the film’s bloated ensemble cast, lack of focus, cheap nostalgic callbacks, and uninspired narrative. On Rotten Tomatoes, where it sits with a critic score of 46%, the consensus reads: “Ghostbusters: Frozen Empire offers a certain amount of nostalgia-filled fun for fans of the original, but a crowded cast and surprisingly serious tone prevent this sequel from truly sparking.”
Of course, in an era of divide between audiences and critics, there has been more positivity on the fan side of things. Frozen Empire has an 83% audience score on Rotten Tomatoes. On IMDB, the film sits at a 6.3/10, a rating which suggests moderate positivity. It can be deduced that while opinions from the masses are more positive, they are lukewarm at best. It appears that many consider the film simply passable rather than exceptional.
A Decline in Popularity
Following the release of Ghostbusters in 1984, the merchandise mania hit with full force. What started simply as a cynical comedy by Ivan Reitman, Dan Akroyd, and Harold Ramis became a hit with young audiences and spawned a franchise. Toys, cartoon spin-offs, a 1989 film sequel, an earworm of a theme tune, and more helped turn Ghostbusters into a massively beloved IP of the 1980s.
The franchise’s mainstream success went dormant for some time. That was until Paul Feig’s 2016 female-led reboot became a massive vessel of controversy. This revitalized interest in the Ghostbusters property. Following that film’s divisiveness, Jason Reitman teamed up with Frozen Empire director Gil Kenan to make 2021’s Ghostbusters: Afterlife. In an attempt to “hand Ghostbusters back to the fans”, Afterlife brought in a new cast to softly reboot the franchise in the same universe of the original duology.
The release of Afterlife was welcomed by some fans (the writer of this article included), but it didn’t hit with the same force that the franchise had once been able to. It was at that point the lowest grossing film of the franchise, making $204 million worldwide. With Frozen Empire still $16 million behind it, time will tell if it is able to surpass Afterlife’s box office numbers.
Regardless, it appears that growth is not in the trajectory of the Ghostbusters franchise. With each film staying in that $200 million earnings range, and budgets getting more bloated over time, the franchise’s profitability is waning. It’s apparent that the Ghostbusters name doesn’t have enough of a draw, nor the same connection with young people, that it did in its heyday.
What’s next for the Ghostbusters?
Whatever the future holds for the Ghostbusters franchise remains to be seen. Kenan seems eager to continue, stating that multiple storylines for future film entries have been considered. As of now, no further installments have officially been confirmed. Columbia is likely waiting to see what the final profits of Frozen Empire are before deciding how to continue with the franchise.
The fate of Ghostbusters, at the end of the day, lies with the fans. Money truly talks, and if the studio executives see people lining up for new Ghostbusters films, they’re naturally going to keep green lighting more. But it goes the other way, too. If Frozen Empire doesn’t prove to be enough of a financial success, this may be the last ghost busting adventure we see on the big screen.
We will know soon enough what future lies in store for the Spengler’s and the rest of the firehouse crew. Perhaps the filmmakers will listen to the criticisms, scale back the budget, and give us a sequel with a better script with a higher likelihood of turning a profit. Or they may just double down and give us something louder, dumber, and more expensive that will kill the franchise for good.
One can only hope for the former. Let us hope that the Ecto-1’s last ride is a truly special one.
