Ghostbusters 3 Director Credits Paul Feig with Making the Franchise More Diverse

Ghostbusters 3 director Jason Reitman thanked Ghostbusters: Answer the Call director Paul Feig for his all-female reboot, which Reitman credits with making the franchise more diverse.

Appearing at Ghostbusters Fan Fest alongside father Ivan Reitman and Feig, Reitman expressed his gratitude to Feig for "kicking down the door on what a Ghostbuster and who a Ghostbuster can be" with his female-led reboot that met harsh reception online.

"Every time I see a movie where there's a SWAT team, that's the first guy who goes to the door, and he's the one who takes all the damn bullets," Reitman said.

"You were the first one through the door and you were the person who was gonna allow it so that I can make this movie and many other people can make Ghostbusters movies about people of every race, every gender, for people around the world. There are all kinds of Ghostbusters movies that I want to see, and thank you for making that possible."

Reitman's film will center around a 12-year-old girl (Mckenna Grace), who with her brother (Finn Wolfhard) and mother (Carrie Coon) have a cryptic connection to 1984's Ghostbusters.

Previously leaked character profiles suggested Grace's tween 'buster is on the autism spectrum, and it's this character that compelled an admittedly hesitant Reitman to develop a sequel to his father's beloved blockbuster and its 1989 followup.

"I thought I was gonna be this indie dude who makes Sundance movies, and then this character came to me. And she was a 12-year-old girl," Reitman said at Fan Fest when revealing new story details.

"I didn't know who she was, or why she popped into my head, but I saw her with a proton pack and this story began to form. And it formed over many years, actually. It started with a girl, and all of a sudden it was a family." Eventually, Reitman "knew this movie I needed to write," he said.

Though Reitman's GB20 will return to the original continuity and ignore Feig's reboot, Feig is hopeful fan support could convince studio Sony to develop a sequel.

The untitled Ghostbusters 3 opens July 10, 2020.