Hudson has appeared in five Ghostbusters films, starting with 1984’s original, the 1989 sequel, 2021’s Ghostbusters: Afterlife and Ghostbusters: Frozen Empire, which hit theaters on Friday. The actor also appeared in the female-led Ghostbusters reboot in 2016, albeit playing a different character.
His role as Winston Zeddemore was first offered to Eddie Murphy before Hudson came on board. Reportedly, the role was reduced significantly before filming began (Winston doesn’t even show up until about halfway through the film). The character also wasn’t featured on the theatrical poster. But Hudson says it’s more complicated than chalking it up to racism alone