This Original Cast Member Was the Best Part of Ghostbusters: Frozen Empire

Everybody knows that Ray Stantz, Peter Venkman, Winston Zeddmore, and Egon Spengler are the OG Ghostbusters. With the revival of the Ghostbusters franchise in 2021, there was skepticism about an attempt to recreate the feel-good magic of the original supernatural slayers. True to form, Dan Aykroyd, Bill Murray, Ernie Hudson, and a CGI version of Harold Ramis appeared on-screen with the newbies, making Ghostbusters: Afterlife an enjoyable, nostalgic adventure.

In 2024, when the surviving cast of Ghostbusters returned in Ghostbusters: Frozen Empire, they brought that energy, with Ray, played by Dan Aykroyd, proving again that he is the best part of the Ghostbusters cast. Alongside his witty banter and characteristic curiosity, Ray proves he’s the heart and soul of the Ghostbusters on screen. In the lead-up to the movies, Aykroyd reminded fans of his enthusiasm for the paranormal and the role as well as what it means for the future of the Ghostbusters franchise.

Ray Stantz and Dan Aykroyd Are Enjoying Their “Golden Years”

Ray,has always brought levity and intellect to the Ghostbusters. In the first Ghostbuster movie, it’s Ray who conjures up the giant Stay Puft Marshmallow Man who ravages New York, a true testament to his endearing nature. Ghostbusters II reveals Ray’s possession by Vigo the Carpathian and highlights his open-mindedness and inherent vulnerability, too. In the third installment of the Ghostbusters franchise, Ghostbusters: Afterlife, Ray serves as the archivist and core of the group, relaying the fates of the group to Phoebe (Mckenna Grace) before helping to vanquish the latest threat.

At the start of Ghostbusters: Frozen Empire, Ray and Winston have set up shop in New York alongside Egon’s daughter and grandchildren, Callie (Carrie Coon), Trevor (Finn Wolfhard), and Phoebe, and Callie’s partner, Gary (Paul Rudd). With the new generation of Ghostbusters chasing down spirits and ghosts, Ray and Podcast (Logan Kim) assess the haunted items people bring in. As the de facto science geek in the group, Ray shares his knowledge of all things ghosts with contagious yet informative excitement. Without Ray, no one would truly understand what was happening. Even when trouble arises, Ray kindly reminds Winston he’s doing exactly what he wants to be doing in his “golden years.”

Ray and Aykroyd get to enjoy their “golden years” performing alongside long-held friends as well as the likes of comedic marvel Paul Rudd. In one exchange, Ray describes the containment unit as “a psychic jail as big as the American West,” to which Rudd’s character, Gary Gooberson, replies, “Home on the Strange.” Ray retorts, “Oh, where the specters and entities play,” in what is a near-perfect example of why Aykroyd’s return to the jumpsuit is so great.

Dan Aykroyd Is Energetic About Busting Ghosts

Aykroyd is no stranger to the unexplained and mysterious. The Ghostbusters franchise veteran reminded Esquire that he wrote the first Ghostbusters movie with Harold Ramis due to his family’s historical connection with the supernatural. The movie was, as he put it, intended to put that legacy into a comedy based on “the real work that’s being done by people who are trying to inquire as to what is behind paranormal and supernatural events.”

Aykroyd hosted the Canadian show Psi Factor: Chronicles of the Paranormal between 1996 and 2000 and The UnBelievable in 2023, the first of which was created by his brother, Peter. In Ghostbusters: Frozen Empire, Aykroyd echoes real life as the host of a set of videos called Repossessed, “the show where we measure the spiritual energy of everyday objects.” Knowing how much Aykroyd and Ray overlap adds to the delight of seeing them on screen.

Aykroyd Is Genuinely Excited About the Future of Ghostbusters

In anticipation of Ghostbusters: Frozen Empire’s release, Aykroyd made it clear why he signed up again to play Ray. In an interview with Newsweek, Aykroyd said, “There’s a historical base to [Ghostbusters: Frozen Empire] that’s quite beautiful… We took full advantage of CGI technology but we also, where we could, kept old-school effects alive.” He explained that the movie was emotional, scary, and was “really going to work.” Put another way, Aykroyd described Ghostbusters: Frozen Empire to News18 as a movie that felt “drawn from the DNA we drew up in 1984” and that “these were regular guys — and now, an ordinary family — who joke and tease and push each other, but they also save the world from terrifying spectral menaces and take that seriously.”

Without Ray, the Ghostbusters would be lost. As the intellectual companion and emotional counterpart to Egon, it falls to Ray to save the day in Ghostbusters: Frozen Empire. As essential as Ray is, there is no Ray without Aykroyd. They’re inseparable and that’s exactly why Aykroyd’s the best part of the latest interaction of the Ghostbusters franchise.