Ghostbusters Afterlife Ending Explained: Is Harold Ramis Still Alive? Will Afterlife Have a Sequel?

Unlike the previous, highly reviled Ghostbusters of 2016, Afterlife is a very successful nostalgia operation managed in absolute safety, which takes few risks and aims above all to warm the hearts of those who have grown up with the exploits of the Ghostbusters. Tears and emotion therefore ensured for those who saw and reviewed the 1984 classic during their teens, without denying a little fun even to the younger audience.

As already mentioned in the review without dedicated spoilers, it is better not to investigate too much about the cast and ending of the film, as the surprises (and possible spoilers) on the closing of the film and related extra scenes are so many. If you have already seen the film or do not have problems with important advances on the plot, below you will find the detailed description of the film’s ending and its explanation, with all the theories regarding a possible sequel. 

Warning: the film also includes two extra post credit scene with further hints to the possible future of Phoebe, Trevor, Podcast and the other young protagonists. To find out more, you can read the special dedicated to the two scenes. 

Ghostbusters Afterlife Ending Explained

In the finale of Ghostbusters: Legacy there is a long-awaited return by fans, already anticipated in part by the latest trailers of the film: that of Gozer. In this version presented as non binary (ie neither man nor woman), the ancient Sumerian entity repeats its cult phrase “are you a god?” and seems to remember his previous skirmishes with the Ghostbusters, as well as the mini marshmallows that are starting to rage for Summerville.

Despite all the efforts of Egon (who abandoned the family to watch over the return of the enemy), Gozer has awakened. After killing the founder of Summerville (who had built the town to catalyze its return), Gozer summons his servants to unleash the Apocalypse on the city. From a deep pit of the abandoned mine, spirits and ghosts begin to run around the town, terrorizing the population.

Only Phoebe and Trevor can stop Gozer’s return. The girl has in fact sensed that her grandfather was not digging the land of the farm but had developed a complex trap to use a large amount of energy and capture Gozer and all the spirits she freed at once. At the beginning of the film we see that Egon’s attempt fails due to a drop in energy in the rudimentary condenser set up in the garden of the house: a mistake that costs the life of the Ghostbusters.

After managing to free their mother from the possession of Gozer’s guardian spirit, Trevor and Phoebe drive the Ecto1 at full speed to the farm, assisted by Podcast and Lucky. The intent is to lure the ancient evil entity and trigger the trap again. Having reached the final showdown, the boys seem to have the worst: the marshmallow men stand in the way of Podcast, Trevor’s proton rifle jams and Phoebe is left alone in trying to stop the opponent.

When everything seems to turn for the worse, survivors of the first Ghostbusters team reveal themselves : Peter Venkman (Bill Murray), Winston Zeddemore (Ernie Hudson) and Raymond Stantz (Dan Aykroyd). We understand that it was the latter who summoned the others, after Phoebe’s phone call from the police station. Gozer has meanwhile become very powerful and Ghostbusters old and new can barely keep up with her. In opening the doors to the afterlife, however, he allowed the return of Egon (Harold Ramis), who in the form of a spirit helps Phoebe. His help is decisive in setting off the trap and capturing Gozer. After the victory, Egon manages to hug his grandchildren and daughter, who cries as the father she thought she was forgotten from dissolves.

Is Harold Ramis Still Alive?

No, the performer died in 2014. His “ectoplasmic” version in the Ghostbusters Legacy movie was created thanks to special effects.

Ghostbusters: Will Afterlife Have A Sequel?

Officially there are no confirmations in this regard. Sony, which owns the rights to the franchise, is waiting to see the box office numbers to make decisions on the matter. There are strong addresses though that Phoebe and Trevor may soon return to the big screen. Already the realization of Legacy makes clear Sony’s intentions: if after the debacle of 2016 we wanted to go back to making a Ghostbusters film (and moreover managing to convince all the protagonists of the original film), it is clear that the idea is to revive the franchise.

The move to Summerville leaves room for more hypotheses for the future: Phoebe and Trevor could stay with their mom in the town, fix Grandpa Egon’s farm and study at Ghostbusters, or millionaire Winston Zeddemore could finance the reopening of the historic Ghostbusters headquarters in New York, possibly led by Prof Grooberson (Paul Rudd) and the Spengler family. If Sony can persuade the surviving performers to return, they could be the ones to take care of the former firehouse.

It will therefore all depend on the performance at the box office and on the willingness of the performers (old and new) to return to the set. For a more complete picture, I recommend reading the special on extra scenes in which Zeddemore decides to repair the Ecto1.