James R | On 10, Sep 2022

It’s only a matter of weeks until the Sanderson sisters are back on our screens, and a new trailer for Hocus Pocus 2 gives us a look at their reunion.

Bette Midler, Sarah Jessica Parker and Kathy Najimy are back together for the sequel to the perennial Halloween classic. It’s been 29 years since someone lit the Black Flame Candle and resurrected the 17th-century sisters and they are looking for revenge. Now it is up to three high-school students to stop the ravenous witches from wreaking a new kind of havoc on Salem before dawn on All Hallow’s Eve.

Joining them will be Doug Jones (The Shape of Water), reprising his role as Billy Butcherson, Whitney Peak (Gossip Girl, Molly’s Game) as Becca, Lilia Buckingham (Dirt, Crown Lake) as Cassie, and Belissa Escobedo (American Horror Stories, The Baker and the Beauty) as Izzy. Also in the cast are Hannah Waddingham (Ted Lasso, Game of Thrones), Tony Hale (Veep, Arrested Development) as the town mayor, Sam Richardson (The Tomorrow War, Good Boys), Juju Brener (Vanquish), Froy Gutierrez (Teen Wolf), Taylor Paige Henderson and Nina Kitchen. Also making an appearance will be RuPaul’s Drag Race stars Ginger Minj, Kornbread “The Snack” Jeté and Kahmora Hall as drag versions of Winifred, Mary and Sarah.

You can see them in action on 30th September, when the film premieres on Disney+. Here’s the trailer:

 

Watch: Teaser trailer for Hocus Pocus 2

28th June 2022

“Lock up your children!” That’s the sound of the Sanderson sisters returning to our screens in the new trailer for Hocus Pocus 2.

The sequel to Disney’s cult classic family horror-comedy is directed by Anne Fletcher (Dumplin’, The Proposal) and written by Jen D’Angelo (Happy Together, Workaholics). It will see three high-school students try to figure out how to stop the ravenous witches from wreaking a new kind of havoc on Salem before midnight on All Hallow’s Eve. It’s been almost 30 years since someone lit the Black Flame Candle and resurrected the 17th-century siblings who were executed for practising witchcraft. Now, Bette Midler (The First Wives Club, Beaches), Sarah Jessica Parker (Sex and the City, Divorce) and Kathy Najimy (Sister Act, Younger) are reuniting to reprise their roles as Winifred, Sarah and Mary Sanderson.

Joining them will be Doug Jones (The Shape of Water), reprising his role as Billy Butcherson, Whitney Peak (Gossip Girl, Molly’s Game) as Becca, Lilia Buckingham (Dirt, Crown Lake) as Cassie, and Belissa Escobedo (American Horror Stories, The Baker and the Beauty) as Izzy. Also in the cast are Hannah Waddingham (Ted Lasso, Game of Thrones), Tony Hale (Veep, Arrested Development) as the town mayor, Sam Richardson (The Tomorrow War, Good Boys), Juju Brener (Vanquish), Froy Gutierrez (Teen Wolf), Taylor Paige Henderson and Nina Kitchen. Also making an appearance will be RuPaul’s Drag Race stars Ginger Minj, Kornbread “The Snack” Jeté and Kahmora Hall as drag versions of Winifred, Mary and Sarah.

The film premieres on Disney+ on 30th September. In the meantime, here’s the video:

 

 

Hocus Pocus 2 sets September release date

18th May 2022

Hocus Pocus 2 will officially arrive on Disney+ later this year – but surprisingly not on Halloween.

The sequel to Disney’s cult classic family horror-comedy is directed by Anne Fletcher (Dumplin,’ The Proposal) and written by Jen D’Angelo (Happy Together, Workaholics). It will see three high-school students try to figure out how to stop the ravenous witches known as the Sanderson sisters from wreaking a new kind of havoc on Salem before midnight on All Hallow’s Eve.

It’s been almost 30 years since someone lit the Black Flame Candle and resurrected the 17th-century sisters who were executed for practising witchcraft. Now, Bette Midler (The First Wives Club, Beaches), Sarah Jessica Parker (Sex and the City, Divorce) and Kathy Najimy (Sister Act, Younger) are reuniting to reprise their roles as Winifred, Sarah and Mary Sanderson.

Joining them will be Doug Jones (The Shape of Water), reprising his role as Billy Butcherson, Whitney Peak (Gossip Girl, Molly’s Game) as Becca, Lilia Buckingham (Dirt, Crown Lake) as Cassie, and Belissa Escobedo (American Horror Stories, The Baker and the Beauty) as Izzy. Also in the cast are Hannah Waddingham (Ted Lasso, Game of Thrones), Tony Hale (Veep, Arrested Development) as the town mayor, Sam Richardson (The Tomorrow War, Good Boys), Juju Brener (Vanquish), Froy Gutierrez (Teen Wolf), Taylor Paige Henderson and Nina Kitchen. Also making an appearance will be RuPaul’s Drag Race stars Ginger Minj, Kornbread “The Snack” Jeté and Kahmora Hall as drag versions of Winifred, Mary and Sarah.

Disney unveiled new footage this week at its Upfront Presentation, which EW reports included a cover of Elton John’s The Bitch Is Back.

You’ll be able to see that in full when the film premieres on Disney+ UK on 30th September, which gives you a month to learn all the dialogue for a Halloween Hocus Pocus party.

 

Disney unveils first image of Hocus Pocus 2

13th November 2021

Disney has unveiled the first image from Hocus Pocus 2.

It’s been almost 30 years since someone lit the Black Flame Candle and resurrected the 17th-century sisters who were executed for practising witchcraft. Now, Bette Midler (The First Wives Club, Beaches), Sarah Jessica Parker (Sex and the City, Divorce) and Kathy Najimy (Sister Act, Younger) are reuniting to reprise their roles as Winifred, Sarah, and Mary, the delightfully wicked Sanderson sisters who bewitched audiences in the 1993 film Hocus Pocus.

The sequel to Disney’s Halloween cult classic will be directed by Anne Fletcher (Dumplin,’ The Proposal) and written by Jen D’Angelo (Happy Together, Workaholics). It will see three high-school students try to figure out how to stop the ravenous witches from wreaking a new kind of havoc on Salem before midnight on All Hallow’s Eve.

Doug Jones (The Shape of Water, What We Do in the Shadows) also returns as Billy Butcherson. Joining them are Whitney Peak (Gossip Girl, Molly’s Game) as Becca, Lilia Buckingham (Dirt, Crown Lake) as Cassie, and Belissa Escobedo (American Horror Stories, The Baker and the Beauty) as Izzy, three young women in present-day Salem who incite the wrath of the three witches. Also in the cast are Hannah Waddingham (Ted Lasso, Game of Thrones), Tony Hale (Veep, Arrested Development), Sam Richardson (The Tomorrow War, Good Boys), Juju Brener (Vanquish), Froy Gutierrez (Teen Wolf), Taylor Paige Henderson and Nina Kitchen.

Filming is already underway on the sequel, and now the first image gives us a glimpse of what exactly the Sanderson sisters are looking like now. You can see them in action in autumn 2022, when the film debuts on Disney+.

 

Filming begins on Hocus Pocus 2

2nd November 2021

Filming is officially underway on Hocus Pocus 2.

The sequel to Disney’s Halloween cult classic will be directed by Anne Fletcher (Dumplin,’ The Proposal) will debut exclusively on Disney+ in autumn 2022. Bette Midler (The First Wives Club, Beaches), Sarah Jessica Parker (Sex and the City, Divorce), and Kathy Najimy (Sister Act, Younger) star as Winifred, Sarah, and Mary, the delightfully wicked Sanderson sisters who bewitched audiences in the 1993 film Hocus Pocus. Doug Jones (The Shape of Water, What We Do in the Shadows) also returns as Billy Butcherson. Joining them are Whitney Peak (Gossip Girl, Molly’s Game) as Becca, Lilia Buckingham (Dirt, Crown Lake) as Cassie, and Belissa Escobedo (American Horror Stories, The Baker and the Beauty) as Izzy, three young women in present-day Salem who incite the wrath of the three witches.

It’s been 29 years since someone lit the Black Flame Candle and resurrected the 17th-century sisters who were executed for practicing witchcraft, and they are looking for revenge. Now it is up to three high-school students to figure out how to stop the ravenous witches from wreaking a new kind of havoc on Salem before midnight on All Hallow’s Eve.

“I am beyond thrilled to be involved in the sequel to a film that is as beloved as ‘Hocus Pocus,’” says director Anne Fletcher. “Fans around the world have embraced these characters and have made this film a Halloween tradition whose popularity continues to grow, and how lucky am I to be back at Disney with these three extraordinarily talented ladies in the iconic roles they created, as well as our fabulous new additions to the cast?”

Hocus Pocus 2 is written by Jen D’Angelo (Happy Together, Workaholics) and produced by Lynn Harris (King Richard, The Shallows), with Adam Shankman (Disenchanted, Hairspray), Ralph Winter (Hocus Pocus, X-Men franchise) and David Kirschner (Hocus Pocus, Chucky) serving as executive producers.

Rounding out the cast are recent Emmy winner Hannah Waddingham (Ted Lasso, Game of Thrones), Tony Hale (Veep, Arrested Development), Sam Richardson (The Tomorrow War, Good Boys), Juju Brener (Vanquish), Froy Gutierrez (Teen Wolf), Taylor Paige Henderson and Nina Kitchen.

 

Hocus Pocus 2 officially arrives on Disney+ in 2022

21st May 2021

Hocus Pocus 2 is officially in the works at Disney+ for a 2022 release.

Bette Midler, Sarah Jessica Parker and Kathy Najimy will reprise their roles as the delightfully wicked Sanderson Sisters in the live-action comedy sequel.

Following on from Disney’s 1993 Halloween cult classic, Hocus Pocus 2 will see Midler (The First Wives Club, Beaches) return as Winifred Sanderson, with Sarah Jessica Parker (Sex and the City) and Kathy Najimy (Sister Act) back as her sisters, Sarah and Mary, respectively. When three young women accidentally bring the Sanderson Sisters back to modern day Salem, the film sees them trying to figure out how to stop the child-hungry witches from wreaking a new kind of havoc on the world.

Hocus Pocus 2 will begin production this fall under the direction of Anne Fletcher (The Proposal, 27 Dresses), who is taking over directing responsibilities from her friend and colleague Adam Shankman (Hairspray, The Wedding Planner), with Lynn Harris (The Shallows) serving as producer. Shankman is currently in production on Disenchanted for the studio, which he is directing, but will remain on this project as an executive producer along with Ralph Winter (Adrift) and David Kirschner (Curse of Chucky). Steven Haft (Tigerland) is co-producer.

“As heartbroken as I am that I won’t be able to direct my friends Bette, Sarah Jessica and Kathy in what is sure to be nothing short of a major event for Disney+ due to scheduling conflicts, I couldn’t be more pleased to be handing over the reins to Anne, who has brought so much laughter and joy into people’s lives with her previous work,” says Shankman. “I am still grateful and proud to help shepherd this ingenious project as executive producer alongside producer Lynn Harris, whom I have loved and admired as a colleague and friend since she helped get me the job choreographing Boogie Nights.”

“Now more than ever, people need to laugh. We should be laughing every day, and there is so much fun to be had with these three unbelievable women playing delicious characters from such a beloved film,” adds Fletcher. “I am so grateful to be able to play a part in bringing these witches back to life, and to be working with my friends at Disney again makes it all the more special. This is a movie for everyone, from the fans who grew up with the first film to the next generation of viewers, and I can’t wait to get started.”

Disney+ develops Hocus Pocus sequel

25th October 2019

A Hocus Pocus sequel is in the works at Disney+.

The House of Mouse’s upcoming streaming service has wasted no time in adding to its library of familiar classics with a slate of new titles based on its existing franchises and characters. Now, the latest getting the eye is fan favourite Hocus Pocus.

The 1993 fantasy comedy stars Bette Midler, Sarah Jessica Parker and Kathy Najimy as a trio of evil witches. After moving to Salem, Mass., teenager Max Dennison (Omri Katz) explores an abandoned house with his sister Dani (Thora Birch) and their new friend, Allison (Vinessa Shaw). After dismissing a story Allison tells as superstitious, Max accidentally frees the coven, who used to live in the house. With the help of a magical cat, the kids must steal the witches’ book of spells to stop them from becoming immortal.

The film was something of a box office flop, taking only $39 million worldwide from a budget of $28 million, but has gone on to have a cult following on video, with theatres such as London’s Prince Charles Cinemas holding Halloween screenings. That built-in audience is who Disney will be targeting with its new sequel to the film, which Variety reports is in early stages of development.

Kenny Ortega directed the original from a script by Mick Garris and Neil Cuthbert. Workaholics writer and co-producer Jen D’Angelo (Netflix’s Game Over, Man! and CBS’ Happy Together) are on board to pen the sequel. Midler, Parker and Najimy are not attached, although Disney is reportedly hopeful that they will be involved to some extent.

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