Bill Murray ‘Ghostbusters Afterlife’ Post-Credits Scene Brings Franchise Full Circle to Opening Minutes

Warning: Spoilers for Ghostbusters: Afterlife…Duh. 

At the beginning of Ivan Reitman’s Ghostbusters (1984), Bill Murray’s Peter Venkman, Ph.D. tests two of his students for ESP abilities. In the scene, he holds up cards and asks each subject to guess what’s on them. If they guess incorrectly, he gives them an electric shock—these are the rules as his students understand them. The rules don’t apply to Murray. 

Venkman never shocks the female student (Jennifer Runyon) while shocking the male student (Steven Tash) even when he guesses correctly. When nerd storms out of the session, Venkman comforts the female student, telling her, “You may as well get used to that. That’s the kind of resentment your gift is gonna provoke in a lot of people.” 

Jennifer: You really think I’ve got it, Dr. Venkman?

Venkman: You’re no fluke, Jennifer. 

Clearly, Columbia University has hired a horrible human being, whose exploitation of power dynamics would warrant cancellation in 2021. Thankfully, we don’t do that here. The scene never leads to Venkman’s preferred conclusion due to Ray’s interruption, during which he tells Venkman about a free-floating, full torso vapor apparition that scared some librarians. Let the ghostbusting commence. 

A post-credits scene—damn you, Marvel—in Jason Reitman’s Ghostbusters: Afterlife (2021), brings the franchise full circle to the original film’s opening minutes. In the scene, Sigourney Weaver’s Dana Barrett tests Venkman the same way he did his students three decades earlier. Venkman guesses the first card correctly before admitting he only ever used to shock his male students—which prompts one of many vengeful shocks (was anyone else worried it’d give the old guy a heart attack?).

Venkman: That was wrong. I know that now. 

After going on about how true love imbues the subject with psychic abilities, Venkman admits he marked the cards. There isn’t much to this funny scene beyond nostalgia and the appearance of Weaver’s character, who doesn’t show up until the credits! Are you kidding me?! 

Hopefully, someone in the Ghostbusters universe finds that nerdy kid from 1984 and tells him there were wavy lines on that card. #JusticeForSteven

Cover Photo: Columbia Pictures 

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