Test screening and marketing
Ghostbusters was screened for test audiences on February 3, 1984, with unfinished effects shots to determine if the comedy worked. Reitman was still concerned audiences would not react well to the Marshmallow Man because of its deviation from the realism of the rest of the film.[15] Reitman recalled that approximately 200 people were recruited off the streets to view the film in a theater on the Burbank lot. It was during the opening library scene Reitman knew the film worked. Audiences reacted with fear, laughs, and applause as the Librarian Ghost transformed into a monster.[15] The fateful Marshmallow scene was met with a similar reaction, and Reitman knew he would not have to perform any re-shoots.[9][15] The screening for fellow industry members fared less well. Price recalled laughing as the rest of the audience sat deadpan; he rationalized an industry audience wants failure. Murray and Aykroyd's agent Michael Ovitz recalled an executive telling him, "Don't worry: we all make mistakes", while Roberto Goizueta, chairman of Columbia's parent, The Coca-Cola Company, said: "Gee, we're going to lose our shirts".[8][70]
In the months before its debut, a teaser trailer focused on the "No ghosts" logo, helping it become recognizable far in advance, and generating interest in the film without mentioning its title or its stars.[1][71] A separate theatrical trailer contained a toll-free telephone number with a message by Murray and Aykroyd waiting for the 1,000 callers per hour it received over a six-week period.[13] They also appeared in a video for ShoWest, a theater-owner convention, to promote the film.[72] Columbia spent approximately $10 million on marketing, including $2.25 million on prints, $1 million on promotional materials, and $7 million on advertising and miscellaneous costs including a $150,000 premiere for a hospital and the hotel costs for the press.[73] Including the budget and marketing costs, it was estimated the film would have to make at least $80 million to turn a profit.[47]
Box office
The premiere of Ghostbusters took place on June 7, 1984, at the Avco Cinema in Westwood, Los Angeles, before its wide release the following day across 1,339 theaters in the United States (U.S.) and Canada.[1][74] During its opening weekend in the U.S. and Canada, the film earned $13.6 million—an average of $10,040 per theater.[f] It finished as the number one film of the weekend, ahead of premiering horror-comedy Gremlins ($12.5 million), and the adventure film Indiana Jones and the Temple of Doom ($12 million), in its third week of release.[74][75] The gross increased to $23.1 million during its first week,[g] becoming the first major success for the studio since Tootsie (1982).[h] The film remained number one for seven consecutive weeks, grossing $146.5 million, before being ousted by Purple Rain in early August.[78][79][80]
Ghostbusters regained the number one spot the following week before spending the next five weeks at number two, behind the action film Red Dawn and then the thriller Tightrope.[81][82][83] Ghostbusters remained among the top-three grossing films for sixteen straight weeks before beginning a gradual decline and falling from the top-ten by late October. It left cinemas in early January 1985, after thirty weeks.[76][84] Ghostbusters had quickly become a hit, surpassing Indiana Jones and the Temple of Doom as the top-grossing film of the summer, and earning $229 million,[i] making it the second highest-grossing film of 1984, approximately $5 million behind Eddie Murphy's action-comedy Beverly Hills Cop ($234.8 million) which was released in mid-December.[15][85] Ghostbusters surpassed Animal House as the highest-grossing comedy film ever, until Beverly Hills Cop surpassed it six months later.[9][84][85]
Columbia had negotiated 50% of the box-office revenues or 90% of gross after expenses, depending on whichever was higher. Since the latter was the case, the studio received a 73% share of the box office profit, an estimated $128 million.[73][j] The main cast members each received percentages of the gross profits or net participation.[1] A 1987 report estimated Murray alone had earned between $20–30 million from his share.[86][k] Detailed box office figures are not available for territories outside the U.S. and Canada, but it is estimated to have earned $53 million, bringing Ghostbusters' worldwide total to $282.2 million.[74][l] That year saw the release of several films that would later be considered iconic of the era, including: Gremlins, The Karate Kid, The Terminator, A Nightmare on Elm Street, Romancing the Stone, and The NeverEnding Story. It was also the first year in box office history in which four films, including Ghostbusters, grossed over $100 million.[87]
Ghostbusters was re-released in the U.S. and Canada in August 1985, earning a further $9.4 million over five weeks, raising its theatrical gross to $238.6 million[88][89] and surpassing Beverly Hills Cop as the most successful comedy of the 1980s.[85] A restored and remastered version was released in August 2014, at 700 theaters across the U.S. and Canada to celebrate its 30th anniversary. It earned an additional $3.5 million, bringing the theatrical total to $242.2 million.[90][91] The film has also received limited rereleases for special events and anniversaries.[92][93] Combined with available figures for territories outside of the U.S. and Canada, the film has earned an estimated $295.2 million worldwide.[74] Adjusted for inflation, the North American box office is equivalent to $667.9 million in 2020, making it the thirty-seventh highest-grossing film ever.[94]
