Bridesmaids actors Melissa McCarthy and Kristen Wiig, and current Saturday Night Live cast members Kate McKinnon and Leslie Jones are currently in talks to star in director Paul Feig's all-female reboot of Ghostbusters, a rep for Feig confirmed to BuzzFeed News. The Hollywood Reporter was the first to break the news.
It would be a reunion of sorts for McCarthy, Wiig, and Feig, who previously worked together on Bridemaids. McCarthy also co-starred with Sandra Bullock in Feig's The Heat.
Feig himself addressed the casting rumors on Twitter with this photo:
Feig signed on to revive Ghostbusters in August 2014 and in October, it was revealed that The Heat screenwriter Katie Dippold had signed on to pen the script.
The original all-male Ghostbusters starring Bill Murray, Dan Aykroyd, Ernie Hudson, and Harold Ramis opened in 1984, just over 30 years ago. It was followed by a sequel in 1989. A third installment of the franchise with original director Ivan Reitman stalled when Ramis, who played egghead paranormal-exterminator Egon Spengler, died last February.
No further information is currently being released by Sony about the all-female Ghostbusters reboot, and a rep for the studio had no comment when contacted about the casting news. Reps for McCarthy, Wiig, McKinnon, and Jones did not immediately reply to BuzzFeed News' request for confirmation.
This story has been corrected to accurately state that Melissa McCarthy is in negotiations to star in the "Ghostbusters" reboot. The post previously stated that she was confirmed to appear in the film by director Paul Feig's rep, but there was a miscommunication. We regret any false hope we've instilled in the American public and our fingers are crossed this all becomes official soon!