Ghostbusters: Frozen Empire Ending Explained: The Great, Beyond

Major spoilers follow.

Ever since a quartet of blue-collar fringe science-exploring schlubs first formed an organization known as the Ghostbusters back in 1984, the Ray Parker Jr.-led refrain of "Who ya gonna call?" has been both a promise and a cross to bear. While the original 'Busters (and their female counterparts from 2016) have continually struggled to convince themselves and others that non-corporeal entities are very real and need to be handled, they've also been burdened with the fact that ghostbusting is a full-time job with few tangible benefits. In essence, everyone from Peter Venkman (Bill Murray), Raymond Stanz (Dan Aykroyd), Winston Zeddemore (Ernie Hudson) to Phoebe Spengler (Mckenna Grace), her mother Callie (Carrie Coon), and others have been so continually preoccupied with the afterlife that they've barely carved out a present life for themselves.

That's the dilemma facing all of the people who call themselves Ghostbusters in the latest installment of the franchise, "Frozen Empire." While the world (and especially the 'Busters' hometown of New York City) now generally understands that ghosts exist, the Ghostbusters are still a relatively small group of people dedicating their lives to studying the other side and keeping the spectral peace, with the Spengler family in particular feeling the burden of carrying on their father Egon's legacy. Outside of the series' narrative, "Ghostbusters" as a franchise is feeling similar growing pains, having been through two original installments, several animated series, a remake, and a legacy sequel in the form of Jason (son of original director Ivan) Reitman's "Afterlife." Thus, "Frozen Empire," co-written by Reitman and written and directed by Gil Kenan, is the first "Ghostbusters" film since "Ghostbusters II" where starting from scratch isn't the focus; rather, just like its characters, it's interested in seeing what else might be out there in the astral plane. Put another way, what the Ghostbusters are has been well established, and "Frozen Empire" sees the various teams, friends, and families seeking to find out why 'Bustin makes them feel good.

"Frozen Empire" picks up the torch from Reitman's "Afterlife" in that it's all about the legacy of the Ghostbusters, past and present. To that end, the film opens in New York City 1904, when the Hook & Ladder Company 8 firehouse is still operating as an actual firehouse, a group of men rushing off in a vintage fire wagon toward an emergency in the middle of a hot NYC summer.

It turns out that the emergency is occurring at a swanky hotel suite currently occupied by the Manhattan Adventurers Club, and as the firemen arrive, one attempts to open the door only to find his hand nearly freezing solid. Removing his hand just in time, the men break open the door to the club, discovering upon entry that all the members have been frozen to death. Even as these corpse-icles shatter into a hundred little pieces, the firemen discover someone in the room who's very much alive: a mysterious woman who holds an even more mysterious grey orb. While it's not clear what's happened, it is clear that a dark, malevolent spirit now resides inside that orb, something that is desperate to get out.

Meanwhile, in 2024, malevolent ghosts are still desperate to get out and cause mischief, so it's up to the Ghostbusters to take care of business. Given the advanced age of the original 'Busters, it's fallen to the Spengler family to take the reins of the Hook & Ladder and all within it. Callie and her beau, former seismologist and schoolteacher Gary Grooberson (Paul Rudd), have moved from Oklahoma to NYC, where Phoebe and Trevor (Finn Wolfhard) help them chase and capture ghosts across the city.

As the family suffers through a swelteringly hot summer's day while trapping the Hell's Kitchen Sewer Dragon, tensions are high: Trevor, now 18, is desperate to prove his adulthood, while Phoebe, now 15, is suspicious of Gary's not-quite-stepdad role in her family as well as what she believes to be her mother's opportunistic latching onto the legacy of her grandfather. Phoebe's natural search for her place in the world becomes a lot more complicated once the Mayor, none other than former EPA dweeb Walter Peck (William Atherton), officially benches her on account of her being a minor.

Things are indeed getting messy at the firehouse, on both a micro and macro level. Inspecting a persistent leak in the ceiling (and given free rein from Callie to take care of the problem himself), Trevor discovers that rambunctious spook Slimer (neé Onionhead) nesting inside a pile of garbage in the attic. Downstairs, Gary nervously learns that the ghost containment unit, operational since the 1980s, is now becoming overstuffed with spectral energy. Who are the Ghostbusters going to call when they have storage needs?

Phoebe and the Spenglers are not the only ones to have moved to the Big Apple from Oklahoma; the precocious and entrepreneurial social media maven known as Podcast (Logan Kim) is hanging out with Ray over the summer, taking over the older Ghostbuster's spare room in the basement of Ray's Occult Books downtown while his parents believe him to be at Space Camp. Podcast and Ray aren't merely running the shop and babysitting the mischievous Mini-Pufts, they've also begun a fairly successful YouTube channel called "Repossessed," in which Ray examines supposedly haunted objects brought in by guests with his PKE meter before Podcast smashes the trinkets (if they turn out to not be haunted).

It's for that reason that Ray isn't immediately suspicious when a charming but slumming fence, Nadeem Razmaadi (Kumail Nanjiani), enters the shop bearing a box full of junk from his recently departed grandmother's apartment where he still lives. Ray is unimpressed with much, except for a mysterious grey orb that sends his PKE meter off the scale. Even more intriguing (to Ray) and worrying (to everyone else) is that the orb suddenly emits a huge burst of telekinetic energy, a wave that spreads throughout the city, causing a crack to develop inside the Ghostbusters firehouse right where the containment facility is. Ray pays Nadeem $50 for the orb, and Nadeem gladly takes the cash, though he has a moment of doubt after doing so.

Fortunately for the Spenglers, there are more people in the Tri-State Area who can answer the call when it comes to their storage problem. Following on from the post-credits scene of "Afterlife," which revealed that Winston had become financially wealthy and had taken over the 'Busters business concerns at large, Winston and Janine Melnitz (Annie Potts) introduce the Spenglers to Lars Pinfield (James Acaster), the head researcher at the newly formed Paranormal Research Center located in an old aquarium. At this facility, Winston and his team have overseen the construction of several more ghost containment units, creating a storage capacity as big as the American West.

In addition, the staff at the facility are busy studying all manner of spectral phenomena, including a particularly mischievous (and malevolent) ghost known as the Possessor, who can control any inanimate object that it wants. Trevor is happy to see that Lucky Domingo (Celeste O'Connor), his crush and former carhop from back in Oklahoma, has been hired by the Center to test out new ghost-busting equipment. Lars and Lucky are particularly focused on a new device that essentially separates ghosts from the objects they're haunting, allowing the object to be rendered harmless and the entity to be sent into containment. Ray hands over the ominous orb to Lars for further study, whereupon Lars and the others find further evidence that the ghost inside is malevolent; not only does it react strangely when put inside the separator, it also seems to be emanating some sort of mind control signal, one which even the Mini-Pufts are susceptible to.

While the 'Busters are busy studying the orb, Phoebe wanders the streets of New York searching for purpose, the advice of her mother to use her newfound free time to be a teenager and make some mistakes ringing in her head. Playing a solo round of chess in Washington Square Park one night, she's unsurprised to see a ghost join her game. She is, however, surprised that this ghost is of a non-monstrous girl, a young woman named Melody (Emily Alyn Lind), who perished in a tenement fire along with her family years ago and is now doomed to be a teenager forever.

That is, unless she's able to resolve her unfinished business, the only clue to such being an old matchbook. Having spent years trying to figure out what the mystery might be, Melody has resigned herself to feeling like the matchbook only represents the way she and her family died, and that she's trapped in between worlds no matter what. She is even barely phased when Phoebe (with Podcast in tow) is called by the diner that she haunts to come and bust her, which Phoebe is reluctant to do. The two girls become fast friends, and whether it's romantic or otherwise, there's an undeniable attraction between them.

However, it seems Melody isn't entirely trustworthy, as she speaks to an unseen and unheard voice commanding her, one that belongs to whatever resides inside the orb.

Upon reviewing a video he'd taken of the Mini-Pufts in thrall to the mysterious signal emanating from the orb while at the Center, Podcast shows Ray and Phoebe the footage, and Ray decides the signal is actually an ancient language. Taking the video to a colleague at the New York Public Library, Dr. Hubert Wartzki (Patton Oswalt), the linguist and historian reveals that the language and the orb are related to the legend of the despotic Garraka.

Apparently, Garraka was the right hand of a powerful king thousands of years ago, but when this king sought to sever ties with the warmongering Garraka for fear of him becoming power-hungry, Garraka used his powers and influence to declare doom for all of humanity in the form of Kusharit Umoti, also known as The Death Chill, in which people are killed by fear itself.

Garraka was only stopped from wiping out humanity by a small group of protectors called the Firemasters, who used their powers of flame to counteract Garraka and trap him inside the orb. Wartzki plays an old cylinder recording of the last meeting of the Manhattan Adventurers Club in 1904, in which the members read aloud a spell that released Garraka from the orb. Unfortunately, it turns out Possessor has stowed away inside Podcast's equipment, and he tries to steal the cylinder for Garraka to use. Phoebe leaps to action, stopping Possessor before he's able to hurt anyone (especially Ray), but not before a ton of property damage has been caused.

Unfortunately, the brunt of responsibility for the library incident falls on poor Phoebe's shoulders, as she's berated by Peck (who gleefully informs the Ghostbusters that the city will be shutting them down and condemning the firehouse, effective immediately) and then arrested upon speaking her mind to his face. An exhausted and worried Callie and Gary reprimand Phoebe, a conversation that hurts the good-natured Gary (who wants to be both her parental figure and her friend) as much as it does her.

Emotionally wounded and adrift, Phoebe encounters Melody again, and the ghost girl persuades her to take her to see the Research Center, especially given Phoebe's admission that the separator could be used to allow her and Melody to briefly exist on the same plane of existence. The lonely, yearning Phoebe indeed uses the separator to remove her spirit from her body, setting a timer for two minutes so that her physical body doesn't perish in the interim. Unfortunately, this was all part of Garakka's plan; as Melody explains, Garakka can control ghosts but not humans, and it needs a human voice to recite the spell that will free him from the orb. While Melody is no fan of Garakka or his intent, she believes that once the evil god opens up the rift between dimensions in order to gather his army of ghosts, she'll be able to cross over to the other side where her family waits for her.

After a briefly possessed Phoebe is made to recite the spell, Garakka's orb shatters, freeing the evil ghost, and not even a vigilant Lucky can stop him, discovering that the proton packs have no effect on him at all. While Garakka turns NYC into a hellish, ghost-filled ice age, he searches for any Firemaster looking to challenge him, eventually ending up at Nadeem's apartment, where his horns are being kept in a secret room Nadeem only recently discovered.

It so happens that Nadeem is the grandson of that woman who was able to recapture a briefly unleashed Garakka in 1904, meaning he's the last in a long line of Firemasters. Upon a power screening conducted by Venkman (done in typical Venkman fashion, meaning with as much antagonism as possible), Nadeem realizes that he has some telekinetic power over fire.

However, using that power isn't exactly easy, as Nadeem, Podcast, and Ray discover to their dismay as they try to train in time for a rapidly approaching battle with Garakka. While the Firemaster (an inversion of the series' malevolent Keymaster and Gatekeeper) practices, Phoebe reconciles with Gary and Callie, apologizing for her mistake while her parents forgive her. Gary, whose parental skills have advanced since his teaching days (though, as an earlier moment reveals, he's still foisting horror movies on young people, advocating for the likes of none other than Ivan Reitman's "Cannibal Girls" for family movie night), motivates Callie, too, inspiring her to not cut and run from the firehouse despite what Peck and the NYPD say.

Motivation is not a problem for Ray Stanz, who is confronted by Winston, with the latter rightfully pointing out that Stanz's quest for knowledge nearly got himself killed and Podcast and Phoebe hurt. For his part, Stanz declares that he'd rather spend his "golden years" chasing his dreams and saving the world rather than fading into the background. More than ever before, the firehouse — a historically and spiritually significant landmark, resting atop a point of energy great enough to cause a tear between dimensions — is filled with underdogs who know their worth and, now, their purpose.

Those epiphanies arrive just in time, too, because no sooner have the Ghostbusters suited up and gotten themselves in gear than the evil Garakka shows up, ready and eager to kick the dimensional doors in. With the arrival of Venkman, the complete 'Busters make a plan to hold Garakka and the ghosts in his thrall back: realizing that the orb that held Garakka for centuries was made from a substance that is related to copper, they cut some sections of the firehouse's pole in order to use it to boost Phoebe's proton pack.

Unfortunately, a large part of their plan hinges on Nadeem utilizing his powers as the last Firemaster, and while Nadeem bravely steps up to the task, he forgets that he used up all of his lighter's fluid while practicing his abilities. Garakka destroys the containment unit while entrapping and freezing the Ghostbusters while Phoebe unsuccessfully tries to reason with Melody.

Refusing to give up, Phoebe manages to hurt Garakka with her copper-infused pack, but even that's still not enough. It's when Melody finally realizes her unfinished business on this plane of existence — to light the match in her matchbook that she couldn't light before until now — that the tide turns. With Nadeem using the open flame to break Garakka's Death Chill and Phoebe getting the use of her pack back, the Spengler family keeps Garakka at bay while the older 'Busters join together to turn the containment unit back on. Eventually, Garakka and the other malevolent ghosts are sucked back into storage, having been well and truly busted.

Earlier, when Phoebe and Melody had a philosophical discussion about the afterlife and what might happen when a corporeal being passes on, Phoebe used the memory of seeing her grandfather pass away at the end of "Afterlife" to present the theory that your spirit rejoins the fabric of the universe, becoming one with everything. A now-fulfilled Melody seems to confirm this, as she fades away in front of Phoebe, turning into stardust (or ectoplasm, or whatever term you may wish).

The triumphant Ghostbusters are met just outside the firehouse by a throng of citizens, who are ecstatic that the crew has saved NYC once again and dispelled not only the apocalypse but the unseasonable weather. Although Peck shows up to try and jail the 'Busters yet again, the wave of positive public opinion (helped in large part by a news crew filming live) gets him to change his tune pretty quickly.

While the older 'Busters, led by Winston, tell the media all about how the organization has expanded to better serve the world's supernatural needs, Phoebe and the Spenglers come together as a newly empowered family unit, during which Gary excitedly calls himself a Spengler (which Callie approves of) and Phoebe refers to him briefly as "Dad." Family is something very much on the mind of "Frozen Empire" and its makers: as Bill Murray explains in the film's official press kit, "Family, for me, is not what I thought it was when I was eight. Now it means a whole different thing. As we're trying to rid the world of these phantoms that upset us all in our lives, that's what we're doing when we play together, when we work together." As the film closes with a tribute to Reitman the senior ("For Ivan"), it's clear that the legacy of the "Ghostbusters" family, literal or figurative, is secure.

Good timing, too, because Phoebe and her family are off in the Ecto-1 (which Trevor finally gets to drive), taking after a now-freed Sewer Dragon. As a mid-credits scene also reveals, the Mini-Pufts are on the move, taking over a truck at a nearby truck stop for parts unknown. Clearly, someone's gonna need to make a call about these rambunctious specters pretty soon — fortunately, there won't be a question of who to dial.