It was announced on Wednesday that the Ghostbusters have a new home when it comes to toy products. Hasbro has been awarded the master toy licensee for the toy line and will launch new product in time for Jason Reitman’s upcoming sequel.
This announcement doesn’t come as too big of a surprise as Hasbro has been playing with the license for a bit now. It previously released an Ecto-1 Ectotron Transformer in 2018, and at San Diego Comic-Con in July 2019, an Ecto-35 Optimus Prime was released.
“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.”
No images have been released yet of the new line, but with New York Comic Con coming up in October, and Toy Fair in Feb. 2020, we’re sure to see something in the not too distant future.
There is a bit of symmetry to this announcement. Hasbro purchased Kenner years ago. Kenner had the popular The Real Ghostbusters toyline in the 1980s. Now, we aren’t saying they will reuse the old molds, but we would be extremely surprised if there isn’t some sort of acknowledgment of the heritage.
The new Ghostbusters film will hit theaters on July 10, 2020.
