Ghostbusters: Afterlife tells the story of Egon Spengler’s grandchildren, Phoebe and Trevor, who inherit his old house in Summerville, Oklahoma with their mother Callie. The plot of Ghostbusters: Afterlife is very similar to that of the 1984 Ghostbusters film, so there are plenty of references and Easter eggs for fans to watch out for.
10 Background props
Many background objects are used as hidden references in this movie. When the Spenglers first move into Egon’s old house, Phoebe can be seen picking up a small statue that closely resembles the Terror Dogs from the original film. When Phoebe finds Egon’s lab, there are also jars of fungus and Petri dishes on a background shelf — this is most likely a reference to Egon’s “I collect spores, molds and fungus” line in the 1984 movie. There is also a shot of a Twinkie in the glove compartment of the Ecto-1, referencing Egon’s giant Twinkie analogy from the original movie.
9 Biblical references
The original Ghostbusters movie definitely didn’t shy away from comparing the return of the dead to lines from the Bible. The audience is reminded of this as soon as Egon’s house is first seen in daylight, as he has huge metal sheets with Revelations 6:12 painted on them. The quote, “And I looked, and he opened the sixth seal, and behold, there was a great earthquake. And the sun became as black as sack cloth, and the moon became as blood,” was also cited in the 1984 Ghostbusters movie.
8 “We got one!”
After Phoebe, Trevor and Callie arrive at Egon’s house, they are greeted by Janine Melnitz, the Ghostbusters’ secretary from the original movie. She explains that she has been looking after the house after Egon died and that he “could barely keep the lights on.” Annie Potts reprises her original role from the 1984 movie to make this cameo in Ghostbusters: Afterlife.
7 Fire poles
In order to get down to Egon’s lab, Phoebe has to slide down a fire pole, just like the Ghostbusters had to slide down a fire pole to get to the Ecto-1 in the original movie. The Ghostbusters sliding down the fire pole has become an iconic scene amongst movie fans, and so the fire pole to Egon’s lab was instantly recognizable to most audience members.
6 “Switch me on.”
When Phoebe and her friend Podcast are testing the proton pack that Phoebe found in Egon’s lab, Phoebe says “Switch me on.” Ray said the same thing when he first tested the proton pack in the 1984 Ghostbusters movie. This line connects the new generation of Ghostbusters with those from the 1984 film.
5 “Who you gonna call?”
After getting arrested for chasing a ghost and accidentally destroying half the town, Phoebe, Trevor and Podcast are put in holding cells in the police station. When Phoebe asks for her phone call, the chief of police asks “Who you gonna call?” This is clearly a callback to the Ghostbusters jingle from the original movie. Instead of calling her mom like the audience might expect her to, Phoebe calls the Ghostbusters’ number from their old advert, which she saw when she was watching it on YouTube with Podcast and her teacher Gary Grooberson.
4 Mini Marshmallow Men
Right before the inevitable conflict of the movie, there is a scene where Gary is browsing through sugary products at Walmart. He comes across a shelf with Stay Puft Marshmallow bags on it. Suddenly, loads of mini Stay Puft Marshmallow men burst out of the bags and start wreaking havoc across the store. This is a clear reference to the giant Stay-Puft Marshmallow Man that stomps across the streets of New York at the end of the 1984 Ghostbusters movie.
3 “There is no Dana, only Zuul.”
After Gary gets possessed by the Keymaster, he frees the Gatekeeper, who possesses Callie Spengler. When Phoebe and Trevor realize that she has been possessed and try calling out to her, she says “There is no Mom, only Zuul.” This is a direct reference to Sigourney Weaver’s line “There is no Dana, only Zuul.” In a later scene where Gary and Callie meet up in the mountains, both possessed by the Keymaster and Gatekeeper, Callie is wearing a golden dress that looks very similar to the orange dress that Dana wears when she is possessed in the 1984 Ghostbusters movie.
2 “Are you a god?”
In the final showdown between the Spenglers and Gozer, they are saved by Peter, Ray and Winston, played by the original cast of the 1984 Ghostbusters movie. Gozer turns to them and asks “Are you a god?” just like in the original movie. In the 1984 movie, Ray answers “No,” which leads to Gozer hitting the Ghostbusters with electricity and Winston saying, “Ray, when someone asks you if you’re a god, you say yes!” In Ghostbusters: Afterlife, Ray pauses for a moment before he finally answers “Yes” and all of the Ghostbusters hit Gozer with their proton packs.
1 ESP tests
Fans who stayed for the end credits scene would have been treated with a cameo from Sigourney Weaver. This scene shows Dana using Peter’s Venkman’s ESP test from the original movie on him. This is a reference to the scene where Peter plugs students up to the test and asks them to guess what shapes are on the cards that he holds up, giving them electric shocks if they guess wrong. This scene reminds audiences of Murray and Weaver’s chemistry from the 1984 film and gives fans a chance to see Sigourney Weaver reprising one of her earliest roles.
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