Robin Shelby

Robin Shelby (born Robin Navlyt) is an American actress, producer, and visual effects performer, best known to Ghostbusters fans as the physical performer inside the Slimer costume in Ghostbusters II and the voice of Lady Slimer in Ghostbusters: Answer the Call. She was introduced to character performance work at Industrial Light and Magic during production of the 1988 Ron Howard fantasy film Willow, where she played a troll creature in one of the film's effects sequences. When ILM needed a performer for the Slimer suit for Ghostbusters II, they called her to audition.

In Ghostbusters II (1989), Shelby spent six weeks working inside the Slimer costume, collaborating closely with the visual effects team to bring the character to life. The costume, she has noted, weighed nearly as much as she did. Slimer's voice in Ghostbusters II was provided by director Ivan Reitman, who had also performed all of Slimer's unearthly vocalizations in the original film. She returned to the franchise in Ghostbusters: Answer the Call (2016), this time providing the voice of Lady Slimer, a counterpart to the original character. On June 21, 2016, Shelby publicly confirmed she had a role in the film; her specific contribution was reported on July 9, 2016, during the live broadcast of the film's premiere. She spent one day on set for the 2016 production, and has reflected on the unusual distinction of having played both Slimer and his on-screen love interest.

Lady Slimer's design draws on two distinct comic inspirations: the character is a homage to Mandy Pepperidge (played by Mary Louise Weller) from the 1978 comedy Animal House, because Slimer himself is loosely based on John Belushi's Bluto, who marries that character at the end of the film. Lady Slimer is also visually based on She-Devil, the wife of the Looney Tunes Tasmanian Devil.

Shelby's other screen credits include Beverly Hills Cop III (1994) and several short and television projects. She also served as executive producer and actress on the television series Far from the Tree (2011-2012) across 15 episodes. Her official website was once hosted on The Ghostbusters Fan Forum, an early GB fan community site, where she appeared under her birth name Robin Navlyt. In IDW Publishing's Ghostbusters comics, her likeness and name appear in multiple non-canonical references: a citizen running from the Gozerian Terror Bear in Ghostbusters Issue 3 is based on her (appearing alongside Frank Welker in the same panel), and a license plate reading "SHLB" appears in Ghostbusters Crossing Over Issue 5 as a nod to her contributions to the franchise.