Paul Feig Partly Blames Trump for All-Female ‘Ghostbusters’ Hate: “Everybody Went F***ing Cannibal”

Paul Feig Partly Blames Trump for All-Female ‘Ghostbusters’ Hate: “Everybody Went F***ing Cannibal”

As a long-time fan of Paul Feig’s work and someone who has closely followed the tumultuous journey of his 2016 Ghostbusters reboot, I wholeheartedly empathize with his sentiments about the hateful backlash the film received. The political climate during that time was undeniably toxic, and it seems that the online trolls, fueled by the divisive rhetoric of a certain U.S. President, took every opportunity to stir up trouble.


Paul Feig, the director of the 2016 all-female version of Ghostbusters, partially attributes the racially charged and sexist backlash the film faced from internet bullies to the influence of Donald Trump.

In a recent conversation with The Guardian, the movie director reflected on the backlash that the action-comedy featuring Melissa McCarthy, Kristen Wiig, Kate McKinnon, and Leslie Jones experienced upon its release.

In his recollection, the political atmosphere during that time period was quite unusual, as Hillary Clinton was campaigning in 2016 for her office. Many men seemed eager to argue or dispute things. When I faced criticism on Twitter, I would often check their profiles and found that a significant number of them were supporters of Trump.

The situation didn’t end there; Feig claimed that Trump, who later became the U.S. president, further inflamed things with his speech.

Later, the director of Jackpot expressed his displeasure, saying Trump remarked, ‘They’re redoing Indiana Jones without Harrison Ford. That’s not allowed. Now they’re making Ghostbusters with only women. What’s happening?’ He became quite agitated.

Feig added, “Everyone seemed to take on a cannibalistic nature in the movie, making it a powerful political statement. It was as if the message was, ‘If you support women’s rights, this is the film for you. If not, then…’ I didn’t see gender as being significant at all, but people brought their own preconceptions along.

The director of “The Favorite Lady” shared his reasoning for choosing a remake instead of a follow-up to the 1984 and 1989 Ghostbusters films, featuring Bill Murray, Dan Aykroyd, Ernie Hudson, Sigourney Weaver, and Annie Potts.

Bill Murray had previously stated he wasn’t interested in another Ghostbusters project at the time,” Feig reminisced. “Harold Ramis was no longer with us, and Dan Aykroyd and Ernie Hudson were still around, but the absence of half the team made it feel strange. Thirty years had passed, and Murray and the original crew were such an integral part of the movies; I didn’t want to create something that would tarnish the legacy of the original films.

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2024-09-29 05:24