It’s been 24 years since the comedy blockbuster Ghostbusters hit screens, and 19 years since it’s less successful sequel, Ghostbusters II. Universal Studios is said to be working on a third installment of the hilarious ghost-fighting squad, and intends to feature all four of the original castmembers, Harold Ramis, Bill Murray, Dan Aykroyd and Ernie Hudson. The scriptwriters of the new installment, two guys who write for The Office, have presented their initial version of Ghostbusters III to Universal, which is said to be on board. The only problem is that Harold Ramis, the writer/director of the first two Ghostbusters films, wasn’t told about the planned new film until the script was already written, and he strongly objected. Ramis plays the nerdy Ghostbuster with the glasses, and he’s said to be pretty pissed that all this was done without consulting him first.

So, a few of the trade websites, including Ain’t It Cool News, are reporting on the possibility of a Ghostbusters 3, mostly based on this statement Dan Aykroyd made to EOnline:

“Well, y’know, two sharp young writers are purported to be writing the sequel, the third movie now. If I could interest Seth [Rogen] and Judd [Apatow] to be part of it, that would be an absolute dream.”

There had also been some talk that Rogen and Apatow are actually writing a script for Ghostbusters 3, which Rogen denied last month.

Anyway, here’s the scoop: A couple of guys named Gene Stupnitsky and Lee Eisenberg, writers for “The Office” who wrote the script for the forthcoming Year One, had been secretly working on a script for Ghostbusters 3. Their idea was that they’d hand it off to a new generation of Ghostbusters. However, Columbia Pictures never actually told Harold Ramis they were working on the script. Oops.

So, Stupnitsky and Eisenberg wrote an outline, which Columbia loved. Ramis found out, however, and he was pissed, and when they sent the outline to Ramis, he shat all over it.

Now, to appease Ramis, Stupnisky and Eisenberg have started working with him on a new outline.

The problem: Columbia Pictures is worried because they don’t like any of Ramis’ ideas, all of which presumably leaves the future of Ghostbusters 3 up in the air.

Then again, if we can get a Ghostbusters 3 out of the writing duo behind some of the best episodes of “The Office” — without the involvement of Ramis — I’ve got high hopes for Ghostbusters: The New Class.

[From Pajiba]

Maybe Ramis will let go of creative control if enough cash is in it for him. It’s a great idea and one that’s long overdue – maybe too long. The first Ghostbusters was hilarious, the second not too much. If the writers work on The Office though, it could be a fresh and funny take on the original theme. Just don’t expect to see Ramis making another appearance.

Vanity Fair notes that Ghostbusters is the third highest grossing film for Universal ever, and only falls behind Men in Black and Spiderman. We’ll see another sequel if it’s possible.

Here’s a tribute to the first Ghostbusters movie by user ghostbusterfan on YouTube