<P> Ghostbusters is a 1984 American supernatural comedy film directed and produced by Ivan Reitman and written by Dan Aykroyd and Harold Ramis . It stars Bill Murray, Aykroyd and Ramis as eccentric parapsychologists who start a ghost - catching business in New York City . Sigourney Weaver and Rick Moranis co-star as a client and her neighbor, and Ernie Hudson as the Ghostbusters' first recruit . </P> <P> Aykroyd conceived Ghostbusters as a project for himself and fellow Saturday Night Live alumnus John Belushi, with the "Ghostmashers" travelling through time and space . He and Ramis rewrote the script following Belushi's death and after Reitman deemed Aykroyd's initial vision financially impractical . </P> <P> Ghostbusters was released in the United States on June 8, 1984 . It received mainly positive reviews and grossed $242 million in the United States and more than $295 million worldwide . At the 57th Academy Awards, it was nominated for Best Visual Effects and Best Original Song (for the theme song). The American Film Institute ranked Ghostbusters 28th in its AFI's 100 Years...100 Laughs list of film comedies . In 2015, the United States Library of Congress selected the film for preservation in the National Film Registry, finding it "culturally, historically, or aesthetically significant". </P> <P> Ghostbusters launched a media franchise, which includes a 1989 sequel, Ghostbusters II, two animated television series, The Real Ghostbusters and Extreme Ghostbusters, several video games, and a 2016 reboot film . </P>

When did the original ghostbusters movie come out