Sony Pictures has big plans for its revival of the long-dormant Ghostbusters franchise. This revival is set to kick off next year with an all-female reboot set for July 15, followed by an all-male installment (with Channing Tatum supposedly set to produce and star). Now, we learn these plans may include a trip into the world of animation.

Deadline and The Tracking Board recently reported that Sony Pictures is in early talks to develop an animated Ghostbusters feature film. Ivan Reitman, one of the central architects of the franchise, will produce the film with Tom Pollock through their Montecito production banner, with Kristine Belson and Ali Bell to oversee for Sony Pictures Animation.

The plot remains under wraps and no writer has yet been hired, but we are told that the proposed film (described as an action-comedy) will follow a plot line similar to that of the 1984 original, in which a group of scientists band together to defend New York City from a parade of ghosts and other supernatural beings. As of right now, all signs indicate that this film will be a standalone project with no ties to the live-action films.

If this is the case, then the Ghostbusters animated film will follow in the footsteps of another high-profile project at Sony: the untitled Spider-Man animated film from Phil Lord and Chris Miller, which is being developed separately from the new MCU-based Spider-Man live-action film set for 2017.

The Ghostbusters franchise has a bit of a history with animation (at least on TV). The first animated project within the franchise was The Real Ghostbusters, which ran for seven seasons on ABC from 1986 to 1991. A sequel series, titled Extreme Ghostbusters, premiered in 1997 and ran for only one season (with 40 episodes).

Animated films of the genre variety are rare and animated films spun from popular live-action properties are even rarer. If these talks go through and the film gets its green light, then this will certainly be a project of interest and we may see more films of this type.