Ghosts Season 4 Is Avoiding A Major Crossover Mistake

Although CBS’s Ghosts season 4 crossing over with its original British inspiration sounds interesting, the show’s creators are wise to avoid this approach. CBS’s Ghosts is very similar to its British predecessor of the same name from 2019. Where the British series follows a couple, Alison and Mike, who inherit a mansion from a distant relative, the CBS series sees another couple, Sam and Jay, do the same. The heroines of both shows, Alison and Sam, gain the ability to communicate with ghosts after a near-death experience. However, the two popular sitcoms share a handful of important differences, too.

Although the ghosts of CBS’s Ghosts are loosely based on the characters seen in the original British show, not all of them have direct counterparts in the American series. Hetty is based closely on Lady Fanny Button from the British show, while Pete’s personality, appearance, and death are directly lifted from the original show’s Pat. However, Isaac combines elements of the Captain, Thomas, and Mary from the BBC show, while Flower and Sass don’t have direct analogs in the earlier series. This ensures that Ghosts season 4 can feel both fresh and familiar for fans of both shows.

Ghosts Season 4 Is Unlikely To Feature A Crossover With BBC’s Ghosts

Ghosts’ CBS Showrunner Said This Twist Would Be Tricky

Since the two shows are similar but not identical, it might seem as if a crossover between them would be a good idea. The British series ended after five seasons in December 2023, but its characters could still appear in the American show. However, this is a bad idea and, luckily, the creators of CBS’s Ghosts are aware that the show shouldn’t cross over with its British predecessor. Tempting as it is to combine the two casts, crossing over the British and American shows couldn’t work since their premises are too similar and the in-universe logic wouldn’t facilitate the plot.

In an interview with TVLine, Ghosts showrunner Joe Port said it would be great to get all the original show’s cast members to appear in the US series as new, original characters “At some point.” Addressing the idea of Alison and Mike appearing in CBS’s Ghosts, Port said “That sort of doesn’t compute for us because it feels kind of strange.” Port went on to explain that Sam and Jay’s unique, unusual experience was too close to Alison and Mike’s story for the two couples to share the screen simultaneously. Port is right, and not only for this reason.

A Crossover Between CBS’ Ghosts And BBC’s Ghosts Doesn’t Add Up

The Ghosts Of Ghosts Can’t Leave Their Respective Location

Since Ghosts season 4 is complicating its premise already, it makes sense for the showrunner to steer clear of any confusing crossover between the two shows. However, there is another practical problem that makes a canonical crossover almost impossible. According to the lore of both shows, ghosts can’t leave the geographical bounds of the place where they died until their unfinished business is completed. As such, it would only be Allison and Mike who could potentially meet Sam and Jay in CBS’s Ghosts. As outlined above, the couple’s appearance in the US series wouldn’t work for other reasons.

As such, there is no way that CBS’s Ghosts season 4 could justify bringing in characters from the original British series. The ghosts can’t appear thanks to the limitations of their afterlife, while Alison and Mike meeting Sam and Jay would draw attention to their extremely unlikely shared experiences in a weirdly meta way. Ghosts season 4’s big twist promises that Jay will soon see the house’s ghosts too, so there is no room for another character from another series who is also incidentally able to speak to the dead. At that point, CBS’s Ghosts would have changed its entire story.

CBS’ Ghosts Can Still Feature Actors From BBC’s Ghosts

The US Sitcom Already Recast One Star From The BBC Series

If the US sitcom added Alison and Mike to its cast, the show would become a series about a trio of people who could communicate with the dead. The original show’s Mike would be profoundly left out and the sitcom’s original premise would be needlessly complicated. As such, Ghosts season 4 is better off without this crossover. However, there is still another way for the series to bring back cast members from the original British show, and it is one that the show has already pulled off in earlier seasons. The show’s lead actors can always just play new characters.

While Ghosts season 4’s twist might mean that more main characters will see ghosts, the show will still needs plenty of human cast members. Matthew Baynton, who played the Romantic poet Thomas in the original show, appeared as an actor who played Pete in an episode of “Dumb Deaths.” Other cast members from the original show could crop up in guest spots and, provided they weren’t playing ghosts, there wouldn’t be any complicated problems with canon or lore. Lolly Adefope, Martha Howe-Douglas, Laurence Rickard, Ben Willbond, Simon Farnaby, Katy Wix, and Jim Howick could all appear in similar roles.

Ghosts Season 4 Is Right To Ignore The Original BBC Series

Ghosts Is Too Similar To Its UK Counterpart

It would be equally easy for Charlotte Ritchie and Kiell Smith-Bynoe, who played Alison and Mike, to play guest roles in the American version of Ghosts. CBS’s Ghosts doesn’t need a crossover to borrow from the British show’s cast since the sitcom can simply recast the original show’s lead actors. While the US re-imagining of The Office pulled off a David Brent cameo thanks to the two shows having very different tones and plots, this option isn’t available for CBS’s Ghosts. Fortunately, Ghosts season 4’s new cast members prove the series is already building its list of guest stars.

As such, viewers shouldn’t be too surprised if the denizens of Button House start appearing in the series. The two shows share a similar sense of humor, so the stars of the BBC sitcom shouldn’t have a hard time gelling with the US show’s cast. From Breaking Bad’s Dean Norris to New Girl’s Lamorne Morris, Ghosts has already added plenty of notable faces to its cast list over the years. As such, Ghosts season 4 shouldn’t worry about facilitating a crossover with its inspiration and should instead find new roles for the heroes of the old show.

Source: TVLine