Dan Aykroyd Weighs In On New Ghostbusters Cast

After years of trying to get a third installment of his Ghostbusters franchise off the ground with the original cast, comedian and filmmaker Dan Aykroyd has called the actresses announced yesterday to star in the franchise reboot "magnificent."

"The Aykroyd family is delighted by this inheritance of the Ghostbusters torch by these most magnificent women in comedy," Aykroyd told The Hollywood Reporter in a statement.

The new cast is fairly loaded with comedians more famous on TV than film at present. So far, the only star reported to be signed on officially is Melissa McCarthy of Mike and Molly and Bridesmaids fame. Sony remains in talks with Bridesmaids' with Kristen Wiig and Saturday Night Live's Leslie Jones and Kate McKinnon.

McCarthy and Wiig have been rumored for months, often in connection with Emma Stone, who leaked Sony e-mails indicated was in talks. McKinnon is a name that has come up fairly often as well.

Like the original film, there will be four Ghosbusters as well as both a paranormal threat and a fully-human antagonist, according to rumors. It's unlikely members of the previous "generation" of Ghostbusters will appear, in spite of the fact that a Ghostbusters III with original director Ivan Reitman and stars Harold Ramis, Dan Aykroyd and Ernie Hudson was in the works for years prior to Ramis' death in 2014.

Ghostbusters will be in theaters in July 2016.