Dan Aykroyd Champions "Ghostbusters 3"

There has been much on-and-off talk about "Ghostbusters 3," but after the break, actor Dan Aykroyd sets the record straight.

The much maligned project is inching closer and closer to becoming just a footnote in cinematic history than a project that cinephiles await hearing new news about. Yet, through it all, Dan Aykroyd continues to champion the project and urge for its production.

Etan Cohen ("Tropic Thunder," "Men in Black III") is the latest scribe to join the ghoul-hunting project, and has penned the latest script draft this past summer. Meanwhile, Sony is taking steps that could allow actual production to begin next year; though; Fall 2013 seems more likely, rather than a summer start date as others have previously reported.

Earlier this week, a fake news post promoted that Bill Murray signed on to join the third installment of the franchise, yet according to Aykroyd, Murray has lost his rights to the property. With that in mind, the other Ghostbusters are strapping on their proton packs and hoping into Ecto-1 to move ahead without him. There have been a handful of different setups and premises for "Ghostbusters 3" over the years, including the 'Ghostbusters in Hell' concept that Aykroyd refers to as "Man-hell-ttan" — which might have resembled the plot for "Ghostbusters: The Video Game".

But given what we've heard about the project so far, the film seems stuck on being a passing-the-torch storyline that has carried over from the previous draft written by Lee Eisenberg and Gene Stupnitsky ("Year One," "Bad Teacher") and will set the stage for a fourth installment. But will Sony studios put a greenlight behind the green bucks this project hopes to earn at the box office? Or will the ghoul hunters have to move on and let this film rest in its cinematic grave?

You let us know in the comments section below!

Props: Empire