The all-female Ghostbusters movie is already set to become part of the collective pop-culture psyche, but here in the real world, there are many women who have been busy inspiring, pushing, and changing the way we see real-life paranormal investigators. These ladies put the fictional phantom hunters to shame by asking the right questions, kicking ass, and always seeking the truth, no matter where it might hide.
Meet the real-life female ghostbusters that are changing the way we approach the paranormal.
I decided to start my list off with Amy Bruni for many reasons, but most importantly, because Amy has been busy literally doing it all. Not only is she a mom, a business owner, a television star, and an executive producer, but she also makes it all look absolutely effortless in the process.
From 2008 to 2014 Amy co-hosted Ghost Hunters, the longest-running and highest-rated paranormal series on television, before going on to create Strange Escapes, one of the most successful boutique travel companies in the world, which, of course, takes guests on luxurious adventures to the world’s most haunted places.
During her brief hiatus from television, Amy has managed to dominate the paranormal travel industry, but now she’s heading back to the airwaves by starring in and executive producing her own series alongside Adam Berry. Juggling all of these roles is no small feat, so its not surprising that Amy has been inspiring women to carve a place for themselves into every aspect of the paranormal, from investigation, to business, to adventure.
The Dead Files‘ resident physical medium Amy Allan is, in my opinion, one of the most compelling psychics of our generation. In a virtual sea of “love and lighters”, Amy isn’t afraid to lead us into her often dark world to show us that not all of our nightmares are make-believe.
After years of scrutinization from parapsychologists like Dr. William Roll, Dr. Gary Schwartz, and William Everett, Amy has proven herself time and time again to be the real deal. For five years she’s lent her unique talents to people in the grips of paranormal trauma, and though her advice isn’t always what the client wants to hear, it’s real and to the point.
Not only has Allan has changed the way that psychics are included in paranormal research, but she’s made an effort to correct the rose-colored conclusions that “experts” often offer to clients with regards to the complexities of their cases.
Ok, so she’s not technically a ghostbuster, but Ranae Holland has been playing the Dana Scully to Finding Bigfoot’s many Mulders for nearly a hundred episodes, and though she’s traveled the world in search of the Big Hairy Guy for years, she’s still no closer to believing he’s real… and that’s what I love about her.
A skeptic at heart, Ranae is a field biologist by trade and has never been afraid to use that training to debunk potential Bigfoot evidence, which isn’t exactly an easy job when your co-hosts are Cliff, Matt, and Bobo. Since the beginning, Ranea has held the trio to a scientific standard, and because of that, she’s helped raise the quality of the evidence they discover.
Ranae has inspired skeptics and believers alike to get off their butts and get out into the woods, and to always be prepared to challenge the evidence.
There’s a lot to be said about the way one approaches an investigation, and ever since she first appeared on Paranormal State, Katrina Weidman has been bringing with her a depth and scope to ghost hunting that is often overlooked on reality television shows.
Host of not one, but three successful paranormal series, Katrina is the real deal, and her style of investigating the unexplained reminds us to consider that the very core of what we’re doing is dealing with people, both living and dead. When the common attitude in the paranormal community is to be tough and aggressive, Katrina reminds us not to forget that being thoughtful and compassionate is often the only real way to discover the truth.
Currently co-hosting Destination America’s Paranormal Lockdown with seasoned investigator Nick Groff, Katrina has spent the past year in the country’s most haunted locations, capturing some of the most compelling evidence ever seen on television, and if you haven’t been watching, you’re seriously missing out.
There isn’t a subterranean cave, dangerous desert, or cryptid-infested mountain in the world that scares Erin Ryder, and that’s because she’s a bonafide badass monster hunter with the guns to back it up. Seriously, look at those arms.
Erin made her mark by investigating some of the world’s most terrifying legends along side her co-adventurer Josh Gates on SyFy’s Destination Truth. Her specific style of investigation usually involves bombing around remote parts of the world like the real life Lara Croft, often digging up the truth behind timeless mysteries of the unexplained. She’s proven time and time again that there’s literally nowhere she won’t go to find the answers.
Since her TV debut in 2011, Erin has been inspiring us all to go on an adventure, get dirty, and to never let fear get the better of us. Erin is currently being a total badass on Myth Explorer, an online series promoting the new King Kong attraction at Universal Studios.
No list of female investigators would be complete without the inclusion of Lorraine Warren. Not only is Lorraine arguably the most prolific female paranormal investigator of all time, she’s connected to some some of the most iconic cases of paranormal activity in the world. From Amityville to Enfield, Lorraine paved the way for all believers, and even at the age of 89, she continues to inspire many to investigate the paranormal to this very day.
Today she’s been fictionalized by Vera Farmiga in The Conjuring franchise, which has been busy adapting all of Ed and Lorraine’s most famous cases. Regardless of whether or not you’re a fan (or believer) of Lorraine’s, it’s impossible to deny that she’s directly effected everyone who seeks the strange in some way, shape, or form.
Ghostbusters might be a fictional franchise, but in real life there’s a much more compelling group of female supernatural sleuths who have not only been paving the way for those passionate about the paranormal, but inspiring women all over the world to get out there to search for the answers to the world’s most enduring mysteries.