Hocus Pocus 2 - Details We Know So Far
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Hocus Pocus is a Halloween staple. Generations of kids grew up with this cult classic which was released in 1993. While not everyone appreciates its campy brand of spook (it has a 33 percent Tomatometer rating on Rotten Tomatoes), it still ends up getting a lot of air time every October.
Decades after its release, Hocus Pocus is still casting a spell on audiences, and fans are clamoring for the much-anticipated sequel. That's right, Hocus Pocus 2 is happening! When does Hocus Pocus 2 come out, and how much do we know about the upcoming film?
Who will be directing Hocus Pocus 2?
The Hocus Pocus remake was officially confirmed in 2017, but details have been pretty sparse since then. At the time, Deadline announced that film was in the early stages of development and that it would be bringing in a new writer. Hocus Pocus 2 will be written by Scarlett Lacey, replacing the original screenwriters Neil Cuthbert and Mick Garris. It will also be executive produced by David Kirschner, who was a producer on the original Hocus Pocus.
The film's director hasn't been announced yet, but we do know that Kenny Ortega, who directed the original Hocus Pocus, will not be remaining with the Hocus Pocus franchise.
Who will be in the cast of Hocus Pocus 2?
Bette Midler mentioned during a Reddit AMA that she'd take on the role again, and then she then encouraged her co-stars, Sarah Jessica Parker, and Kathy Najimy, who played the trio of witch sisters in Hocus Pocus, to do the same. The latter two told BuzzFeed News that they would love to return for a sequel, but it's been noted elsewhere that Hocus Pocus 2 will feature an all-new cast. Then again, the cast for Hocus Pocus 2 hasn't actually been announced yet, so there still might be a chance that we may get to see the iconic actresses reprise their roles as the Sanderson sisters.
"I think it would be much more fun to bring the ladies back," Hocus Pocus director Kenny Ortega told ET in 2017. "They're all still vital and in their prime and capable of doing so much that it would be great to see Bette and Kathy and Sarah come back together to do another movie and I think they would like to."
He added, "I don't think you have to recreate the magic. I think you start all over and make new magic."
What's the plot of Hocus Pocus 2?
Aside from the trademark humor and spookiness of the original Hocus Pocus, we don't really know what we can expect from the plot of Hocus Pocus 2. It's possible that the film will be based on the novelized version of the movie and its sequel, Hocus Pocus & The All-New Sequel, which was released in 2018 by Disney-Hyperion, a Disney-owned publishing house (per Bustle).
According to the book's description, the novelized sequel takes place 25 years after the events of Hocus Pocus. In it, two of the protagonists, Max and Allison, have a 17-year-old daughter named Poppy who finds herself in a confrontation with the Sanderson sisters "in all their sinister glory."
While this story sounds promising, it also hasn't been officially confirmed as the basis for Hocus Pocus 2. It's possible that Hocus Pocus 2 will go in a completely different direction from the novelized sequel.
Does Hocus Pocus 2 have a release date?
Fans have been waiting for Hocus Pocus 2 for quite some time now, but it's hard to know just how much longer they will have to remain in the dark. The release date for Hocus Pocus 2 has yet to be announced, and the project doesn't even have an IMDb page yet. Since Hocus Pocus 2 was first officially announced, there really hasn't been much new news about the sequel.
Considering that it has been more than two years since the sequel was confirmed, it's reasonable to anticipate an update soon on when we can expect a release date for Hocus Pocus 2. For now, though, it looks like Disney is keeping this project under wraps.
How you can watch Hocus Pocus 2
While Hocus Pocus 2 was initially announced as a Disney Channel movie, it looks like it will now be released on a different platform — or perhaps on multiple platforms.
ScreenRant says that it is now expected to be released on Freeform, which currently regularly airs Hocus Pocus throughout the Halloween season. It's also possible that Hocus Pocus 2 may debut on Disney's new streaming service, Disney+. The latter seems likely, especially as it has already been announced that Disney+ will be hosting at least one other new iteration of a beloved classic, the reboot of Lizzie McGuire.
Bette Midler isn't thrilled with Hocus Pocus 2
While fans are excited about the promise of another Hocus Pocus movie, at least one member of the original cast isn't thrilled. Bette Middler, despite earlier enthusiasm for possibly reprising her role, came out against the plans for the sequel — or at least seems upset that she won't be a part of it. "I know it's cheap," she told People in 2017. "It's going to be cheap!"
The Hocus Pocus star added, "I'm not sure what they're going to do with my character. My character is very, very broad and I don't know who they're going to find to play that."