2024 marks two milestones for the Ghostbusters franchise: the 40th anniversary of the first movie and the 35th for the second. Hasbro is giving fans a HasLab campaign for both films with its latest offering that includes, for the first time ever in the Plasma Series line, the librarian ghost from Ghostbusters, Eleanore Twitty (Ruth Oliver), and Louis Tully (Rick Moranis) in the iconic jumpsuit.
The campaign comes in two tiers, one for each movie. The “base” model includes the Ecto-1 car, Eleanore, and a brand-new Slimer figure. That set is being offered for about $350. Alternatively, the “deluxe” tier includes the car and both figures, plus an Ecto-1A rooftop conversion kit that was seen in Ghostbuster 2. Also included are all four Ghostbusters in their dark gray suits from the sequel and a slew of accessories, all for a $400 pledge. The crowdfunding campaign ends on December 2 and is currently slightly over halfway funded.
GameSpot was on hand at Hasbro’s Pulse event during New York Comic Con and spoke to designer Pat Dennis and Emily Bader from Hasbro about the campaign, what the Plasma Series means to them, and what it took to get this all together–which included having to get likeness rights for Twitty.
“As with any licensing deal, when we work with our partners on the film side of things, they’ll do the heavy lifting usually. So with Eleanore Twitty, or the actress Ruth Oliver, unfortunately she passed away….so they had to go and find her estate,” explained Dennis. “Our friends at Sony and Ghost Corps found the right contact points and got that approved. Usually, when you see the library ghost, it looks almost like a haunted ape, but we’ve never gotten to see her as the shushing librarian. To me, that’s the figure I want…it looks just like her.”
Another character who fans have been clamoring for is the anxiety-ridden and good-natured friend, Louis Tully, who was immortalized by comedian Rick Moranis. Much like any toy and playset campaign, the incentive figure to pull in early backers is a must-have. Hasbro is offering a Tully figure complete with jumpsuit and other ghostbusting accessories, some of which he didn’t technically have in the sequel, but they help to complete the look. However, Tully will only be offered if they hit the goal by November 2.
“So if we hit the goal, Tully will come with a proton pack, a proton stream, a PKE meter, and a trap. One of the things I heard the fan community say was that they want more accessories. You know, there’s been comments about previous releases and my goal with this whole project here was, ‘How can I give everybody everything that they want, or almost everything that they want?'” Dennis said. “What is within my power? I remember sending Emily a message asking if we could just add a PKE and a trap to Tully, and she was like, ‘Let me check on this, but yes.’ So it becomes a really good experience for fans. If this is your first Plasma Series collection, I want it to be an all-in-one collection.”
“I think there is also that wonderful moment in Ghostbusters II where Tully is convinced he saves New York City single-handedly and he is a Ghostbuster. And as such, he should have all of the equipment that he needs to be a real Ghostbuster. So part of this was also honoring him and saying, ‘No, of course you are a real, official Ghostbuster.'”
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“For me, the Ecto-1 is just as much [of] a character as the rest of the cast. There are a few cars that have earned that. It’s not just a car, [and] it’s not just transportation–it has a personality. If you see it driving down the street, you’re going to grab your phone as fast as possible to take a picture. The Ecto-1 is a beautiful car, but to see it in person to be able to ride in it in person, it’s just…it takes you right back the first time you saw the movie or if you saw them at Universal Studios in the parade. It’s an instant pullback and you feel like they’re out there, being paranormal pest control.”
Dennis went on to explain another big displayability feature is that you can simply plug a USB-C cord into the car and the lights stay on, turning it into a lamp. He felt that the Ecto-1 has been a key component that’s been missing from the collection. “It’s something that’s been missing from the Plasma line and we’ve had other six-inch scale, seven-inch scale figures, and those more premium figures never had an Ecto to sit in. This was something that was in our wheelhouse and it fits real nice on a shelf.”
Bader said that they understood this is the first new Plasma Series entry in some time and wanted to check off some things that fans have been clamoring for. “Another thing that was important to us was that we know it’s been a while since we’ve had Plasma Series figures. Listening to the fans, the top three things they’ve wanted were more ghosts, Ghostbusters II [representation], and vehicles. This is really a HasLab project that delivers on all three of those. So we just hope they are pleased with what we put forward,” Bader said
For more information on the Ghostbusters HasLab, check out the full campaign.
