“Ghostbusters” actor Ernie Hudson says “racism” is not to blame for his receiving less money and having a smaller part in the latest sequel compared to his co-stars.
The 78-year-old discussed his thoughts during an interview with British outlet The Independent just after Friday’s release of “Ghostbusters: Frozen Empire.”
“You know, being a person of African descent anywhere in the world, we’re all just learning how to live together and get along together and realize that we’re all connected,” Hudson said. “And it’s very tempting, sometimes, to blame anything that doesn’t work in your life on racism. But there are a lot of things that play into it. It’s not quite that simple.”
The celeb pointed out that he believes a bigger-name star would have received a higher paycheck regardless of his skin color.
“We can say it’s a racial thing, but I think if Eddie Murphy had played the role I played, he would have been paid very well,” the actor added. “I think studios are in the business of making money, and they pay what they feel they have to.”
Hudson worked on five “Ghostbusters” films, including the original with Dan Aykroyd and Bill Murray, released in 1984. The actor said Murray fought for him to have a more prominent role in the 1989 sequel. “[Murray] said he wouldn’t do another one unless I was involved… That doesn’t happen very much in this industry,” he said.
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The “Ghostbusters” alum also shared his thoughts on the controversial female-led reboot, which got mixed reviews when it was released in 2016. Hudson said of the movie starring Melissa McCarthy, Kate McKinnon, Leslie Jones, and Kristen Wiig, “Look, I’m a fan of [director] Paul Feig, so I have nothing negative about him to say. Other than: I don’t quite understand why you do a reboot, you know what I mean? Just make another movie.”
He further stated that he finds the film’s four stars “brilliantly funny on their own” but said “Ghostbusters” fans were looking for something different. “Fans were really invested in the story and the characters and I think it was disappointing. I enjoyed the movie, but I think it wasn’t what fans were hoping for,” Hudson told the outlet.