Ernie Hudson reprised his role as Winston Zeddemore in the hit Ghostbusters: Afterlife, and his character is a beloved part of the franchise. However, it wasn’t always that way.
In an interview with SiriusXM’s Gary Dell’Abate and Rahsaan Rogers on The Howard Stern Wrap Up Show, the veteran actor explains he was “pushed aside” by the studio when it came to marketing the 1984 original.
“I was the guy who was brought in, and so finding my place in the middle of that,” he said, according to The Hollywood Reporter. The actor added director Ivan Reitman, writers and co-stars Harold Ramis and Dan Aykroyd, and Bill Murray “were all welcoming and inclusive.”
He noted, however, “The studio wasn’t, and the studio continued not to be. So it made it very, very difficult because I was a part of it, but then I very selectively was pushed aside.”
Hudson continued, “…I went to the 30th-anniversary release of the movie and all the posters are [just] three guys. Now I know the fans see it differently, and I’m so thankful for the fans because the fans basically identified with Winston, especially young, I don’t want to say minority kids, but a lot of kids.”
In the past, Hudson has mentioned that the Winston character was initially scripted to be in the film from the beginning, but the final film has the character hired mid-way through.
He explained that despite Ghostbusters’ success, it took him more than two years to book another movie.
“It wasn’t an easy road,” he said. “Ghostbusters, I would say, it was probably the most difficult movie I ever did just from the psychological perspective. All those things…It definitely felt deliberate. And I’m still not trying to take it personally.”
Copyright © 2023, ABC Audio. All rights reserved.
