Oh wow! My inner child is screaming right now. Why? Well, it's because Sony Pictures Consumer Products has announced that Hasbro Inc. has been named the master toy licensee for Ghostbusters worldwide. Now, I know what you're thinking. Steve, what in the name of Vigo the Carpathian does that mean? Well, it means that under the terms of the new agreement, Hasbro will create a wide variety of toys inspired by the franchise and its entertainment properties globally designed to appeal to both fans of the original franchise, and a new generation of Ghostbusters around the world. That's right! Sony and Hasbro are aiming to bridge that pesky generational gap between Ghostbusters fans of all kinds. It's dogs and cats living together, mass hysteria!
The new Ghostbusters line will become available in 2020, just in time for Jason Reitman to unleash his GHOSTBUSTERS movie which is slated for a Summer 2020 release. The deal marks a return to the Ghostbusters franchise by Hasbro. How's that? Well, from 1996 to 1991, Kenner, which Hasbro has since absorbed, created and marketed The Real Ghostbusters toy line that children of the '80s, myself included, couldn't get enough of, back in the day. What's more is that many of the original developers from Kenner are still working for Hasbro to this very day.
“Ghostbusters is an iconic and beloved franchise and we are excited and honored to return to the brand as the global master toy licensee and bring new product to the next generation of fans,” said Tom Warner, Senior Vice President, Hasbro. “Drawing on Hasbro’s proprietary insights and culture of innovation, we are working closely with Sony Pictures Consumer Products to create a dynamic new toy line that we can’t wait to share with fans around the world.”
“As we build up to release our new Ghostbusters film next year, it was a natural choice to work with Hasbro to develop an all-new line of toys that not only celebrates the new film but also brings us back to the roots of the original film and toy line,” said Jamie Stevens, Executive Vice President, Sony Pictures Consumer Products. “Hasbro has a proven track record of working with well-known IP to make a variety of high-quality toys and figures that appeal to people of all ages and we are excited to leverage this expertise to bring new product experiences to Ghostbusters fans around the world.”
Oh man, I had all that good Ghostbusters stuff back when Ghostbusters and The Real Ghostbusters were king. I used to spend hours twirling the acton figures' proton pack beam around, trapping ghosts and depositing them in the Ghostbusters Fire Station Containment Unit. I even had the proton pack that you could strap to your back that shot Nerf-like projectiles at your friends. Man, those were the days when your imagination could take you anywhere, and ghosts haunted every corner of your unfinished basement or the woods behind your house. It does my heart good to know that a whole new generation of fans will be afforded the opportunity to have similar adventures when Sony and Hasbro bring their new line of Ghostbusters toys to the masses.