Ghostbusters: Frozen Empire image introduces James Acaster’s character, inventor Lars Pinfield

The Ghostbusters team is expanding in a major way in the Ghostbusters: Afterlife (watch it HERE) sequel Ghostbusters: Frozen Empire (which, of course, also serves as a sequel to the original Ghostbusters and Ghostbusters II). Marketing materials for the film – which is set to reach theatres on March 22nd – have shown us original Ghostbusters Peter Venkman, Ray Stantz, and Winston Zeddemore, played by Bill Murray, Dan Aykroyd, and Ernie Hudson, suited up for ghostbusting action alongside their receptionist Janine Melnitz (Annie Potts) and Ghostbusters: Afterlife characters Gary Grooberson (Paul Rudd), Lucky (Celeste O’Connor), and the Spengler family: Phoebe, Trevor, and Callie (played by Mckenna Grace, Finn Wolfhard, and Carrie Coon). Now Empire magazine has unveiled a new image that introduces inventor Lars Pinfield, a character played by British comedian James Acaster (Hypothetical). The Pinfield image can be seen at the bottom of this article – and seems to give a glimpse of a moment that could be reminiscent of the scenes where 007 would visit armourer Q in his lab, with people conducting experiments in the background.

According to Empire, Ghostbusters: Frozen Empire finds that Ghostbusters HQ in NYC is all go, go, go. Not only are the younger Spengler family (and Paul Rudd’s Gary Grooberson) battling spectres on the regular alongside the original crew, but there’s a whole host of new faces entering the fray too. It’s a whole hive of ectoplasmic activity, with multiple generations coming together to battle the paranormal. In addition to Acaster’s Pinfield and the characters mentioned above, Patton Oswalt (The King of Queens) is in the mix as Dr. Hubert Wartzki and Kumail Nanjiani (The Big Sick) plays a character named Nadeem Razmaadi.

Pinfield is responsible for some of the fresh tech being funded by Ernie Hudson’s Winston – and he’s set to fit firmly into the Ghostbusters universe. Producer/co-writer Jason Reitman told Empire, “James is not playing a Spengler, but he really falls in line with the Egon Spengler ‘type’.“

Aykroyd told Empire that we’ll see Ray spending time with Phoebe’s Afterlife friend Podcast, played by Logan Kim. “Ray and Podcast are buddies – Ray’s a mentor to him. He’s renting Ray’s basement to shoot an Instagram series called ‘Repossessed’, where people bring in objects they think are haunted.” As for Phoebe, Grace said she’s “in her element. She’s now ghostbusting on a totally different scale to what she was doing in Oklahoma.“

At first, Afterlife director Jason Reitman was expected to take the helm of Ghostbusters: Frozen Empire, once again directing from a screenplay he was writing with Gil Kenan – but then it was revealed that Kenan will actually be directing the new film. He previously directed the animated movie Monster House, the live-action films City of Ember, A Boy Called Christmas, and the remake of Poltergeist, and an episode of the Scream TV series.

Are you looking forward to Ghostbusters: Frozen Empire? Take a look at this image of James Acaster’s Pinfield in action, then let us know by leaving a comment below.