Editing Ghostbusters II (section)

=== Development ===
[[File:Official portrait of Lord Puttnam crop 2.jpg|thumb|left|upright|alt=A profile image of David Puttnam. An older Caucasian male with shoulder-length white hair and a short white beard. The man is shown from his front-right profile, facing right and smiling away from the camera. |Then-[[Columbia Pictures]] executive [[David Puttnam]] (2018) was blamed for ''Ghostbusters{{nbsp}}II''{{'}}s lengthy production, though director [[Ivan Reitman]] said it was more the fault of the reluctant cast and crew.<ref name="RollingJul62016" />]]

After the success of ''[[Ghostbusters]]'', a sequel was considered inevitable even though the film had been developed as a stand-alone project.<ref name="Collider2013" /><ref name="NYTDec88" /> The development of ''Ghostbusters{{nbsp}}II'' was arduous, and the behind-the-scenes conflicts were given as much coverage in the press as the film.<ref name="LATimesDec1989" /> When [[David Puttnam]] became chairman of [[Columbia Pictures]] in June 1986, he was not interested in developing an expensive sequel, and favored smaller films such as the critically acclaimed war film ''[[Hope and Glory (film)|Hope and Glory]]'' (1987) and the comedy film ''[[Bloodhounds of Broadway (1989 film)|Bloodhounds of Broadway]]'' (1989) over big-budget [[Blockbuster (entertainment)|blockbusters]]. He also greenlit several foreign-language films by European directors because he preferred making films for the "world market".<ref name="NYTimesFeb89" /> ''Ghostbusters'' was part of former Columbia executive [[Frank Price]]'s legacy, and Puttnam had no interest in furthering that legacy while building his own.<ref name="AICNOverview" />

Reitman later said the delay in development was not Puttnam's fault; he said that executives above Puttnam at Columbia's New York branch had attempted to work around him, but could not get the production moving even after sidelining him. According to Reitman, the delay occurred because the main actors did not want to make a sequel for nearly three years; by the time they decided to go ahead, Murray was committed to his starring role in the Christmas comedy film ''[[Scrooged]]'' (1988). When Murray was finally ready, the script was not.<ref name="LATimesDec1989" /> As co-creators, Reitman, Murray, Aykroyd, and Ramis all had control over the franchise, and their unanimous approval was required to proceed.<ref name="RollingJul62016" /><ref name="VultureControl" />

In April 1987, Puttnam announced that ''Ghostbusters{{nbsp}}II'' would go into production in November that year without having informed Reitman, who had not yet reviewed the unfinished script.<ref name="LATimesMay87" /><ref name="LooperDunno" /> Puttnam was removed from his job in September. This was in part because he had alienated Murray and his talent agent Michael Ovitz. Puttnam had publicly criticized Murray as "an actor who makes millions of dollars from Hollywood without giving back to his art. He's a taker".<ref name="LATimesDec1989" /><ref name="RollingStone" /> He also attacked expensive talent agency packages that provided scripts, directors, and stars; Ovitz also represented Aykroyd, Ramis, and Reitman.<ref name="THRPuttnam" />

Puttnam was replaced as Columbia president by [[Dawn Steel]].<ref name="NYTimesJan1990" /><ref name="NYTimesFeb89" /> When she took the job, her corporate bosses made it clear that getting the sequel into production was a priority.<ref name="RollingStone" /> Columbia had experienced a long series of box-office failures since ''Ghostbusters'', and ''Ghostbusters{{nbsp}}II'' was seen as the best way to reverse their fortunes.<ref name="RollingStone" /> By November, filming was scheduled to begin in summer the following year. At the time, Murray reportedly wanted $10 million to star in the sequel and his co-stars demanded an equal amount.<ref name="ChicagoTribFilmingSched" /><ref name="ChicagoTribSalary" />

The main obstacle was the disputes between the principal cast and crew that had arisen since ''Ghostbusters''. Ramis later said "there was a little air to clear" before they could work together.<ref name="RollingStone" /> In March 1988,<ref name="AICNOverview" /> Ovitz arranged a private lunch for himself, Murray, Aykroyd, Ramis, Reitman, and Ovitz's colleague, CAA head of business affairs Ray Kurtzman, at Jimmy's, a celebrity restaurant in [[Beverly Hills, California]]. Concerns were raised such as whether the principals could still carry the sequel because Murray had been away from films for so long and Aykroyd had had a series of film failures. During the meeting, the group had fun and decided they could work together.<ref name="RollingStone" />

Months of negotiations followed with Reitman, Murray, Aykroyd, and Ramis to negotiate a minimal salary in exchange for a percentage of the box office profits.<ref name="RollingStone" /><ref name="AICNOverview" /> The deal was reported to be 10% of the box office profits each; Reitman denied that the figure was that large but said, "it's a big one".<ref name="LATimesDec1989" /><ref name="AICNOverview" /> This was to keep the budget low, aiming for approximately $30 million, whereas upfront salaries would have raised it closer to $50 million.<ref name="RollingStone" /> After this, the film was rushed into production, with shooting scheduled for mid-1988 in anticipation of a mid-1989 release.<ref name="AICNOverview" /><ref name="ChicagoTribSalary" /> Despite the five years it took to produce a sequel and its necessity for special effects, ''Ghostbusters{{nbsp}}II'' had a shorter schedule than its predecessor's one-year turnaround.<ref name="LATimesDec1989" />{{sfn|Eisenberg|1989|p=5}} [[Michael C. Gross]] and producer [[Joe Medjuck]] returned for the sequel, each promoted to producer. [[Michael Chapman (cinematographer)|Michael Chapman]] replaced [[László Kovács (cinematographer)|László Kovács]] as cinematographer, and [[Bo Welch]] replaced [[John DeCuir]] as production designer.{{sfn|McCabe|2016|p=60–61}}