2021’s Ghostbusters: Afterlife gave us a loveable new crew whilst keeping longstanding fans largely satisfied, deftly dissociating itself from the sexist discourse that had sprung up around the franchise. For the follow-up, Jason ‘son of Ivan’ Reitman hands the directorial reins over to his screenwriting collaborator Gil Kenan, with the pair once again working together on the script.

Frozen Empire returns us to the original’s New York firehouse, from where the Spengler-Grooberson clan ply their ghostbusting trade. Carrie Coon and Paul Rudd are Callie and Gary, now officially a couple, while Callie’s teenage kids Trevor (Finn Wolfhard) and Phoebe (Mckenna Grace) get in on the supernatural action again. The 1984 gang are back on board (Dan Aykroyd slotting in better than a pretty weary looking Bill Murray), with Kumail Nanjiani amongst the well-cast newcomers, and a brass orb containing ancient evil that’s about to trigger an apocalyptic event.

Though it’s become overstuffed with characters, they’re an extremely likeable bunch and, if Frozen Empire isn’t quite as funny as its predecessor, there’s more than enough to chuckle at amidst the action. The plot discrepancies can jar, but Phoebe gets to flirt with the ghost of a teenage girl (an appropriately ‘deadpan’ Emily Alyn Lind) and the film’s Paranormal Research Centre is a particularly enlivening touch, boasting possessed objects and caged ghouls, with James Acaster overseeing it as a Q-type figure.  

Returning to the original setting unleashes a new wave of nostalgic nods, from cameos to callbacks. However, as affable and entertaining as this all is, the film is better when it’s fresher, but often feels weighed down by its reverence for what’s come before. Haven’t we had enough of the constant references already? If, as has been hinted at, there are more instalments to come, then now might be the time to lay some of these ghosts to rest.

Ghostbusters: Frozen Empire is in cinemas from Friday 22 March.