Why 'Ghostbusters' All-Female Cast Is Shrieking Awesome

Ghostbusters? Coming back? Yes, but this time, the 1984 classic reboot will be made up of SNL stars Kristen Wiig, Kate Mckinnon, Leslie Jones and Melissa McCarthy (who was never an SNL cast member, but is still really funny).

New photos from the set were just released today, and all that came to mind after seeing McCarthy with McKinnon together is the "Yass cat."

For reference:

While some bloggers have been skeptical about the reboot of this '80s classic, it is important for Hollywood to cast four leading women, given the lackluster gender gap and lack of diversity for leading roles in the history of film. 

Paul Feig, the director of the Ghostbusters reboot, has spoken out against criticism he received for casting all women, calling it "vile, mysogynistic shit." He's had people on social media accuse him of ruining their childhoods, but he says, "All I know is my ladies are going to kick ass, and I would not want to go into battle without them.”

In a recent study on diversity in Hollywood, the Center for the Study of Women in Television and Film found that women made up only 12 percent of all leading characters in the top-grossing films of 2014. Yes, 12 percent.

You think those numbers are bad? In 2013, it was actually higher —15 percent. In 2012? It was 16 percent.

Out of that measly 12 percent, the roles women played in the top 100 grossing films those years were either those of the girlfriend, mother, or wife. "Their value is determined in relation to the people they bed, marry or birth," reports Variety.

The fact that these leading roles are dominated by men is "out of touch" with the demographic of the moviegoing public, reports Variety, which is that women purchase half of the tickets sold each year. And we're not even talking about racial diversity here, which is also a huge problem in Hollywood. in 2013, 83 percent of leading roles were given to white actors.

Is Feig really ruining anyone's childhood here? It doesn't really matter because not only will this movie probably be really funny, but it will be opening more doors for leading women in the future.

Feig also created Freaks and Geeks (hashtag blessed) and directed McCarthy's recent hit, Spy. Here he is on set on the first day of shooting Ghostbusters: