On the list of movies I've watched the most in my life, Hocus Pocus is right up there at the top of the list (along with Antoine Fuqua's King Arthur Director's Cut) thanks to its annual airings on Freeform (formerly ABC Family), so I'm thrilled that Bette Midler, Sarah Jessica Parker, and Kathy Najimy have announced they'll be reprising their roles as the Sanderson Sisters in a Hocus Pocus sequel that will be released on the streaming service Disney+ in the fall of 2022.
The Hocus Pocus 2 news was shared on the official Disney+ Twitter page (see below), and while a sequel was officially announced by Disney late last year, this is the first official confirmation that we'll see at least some of the original cast members reprise their roles in the follow-up film.
It remains to be seen, however, if Max (Omri Katz), Dani (Thora Birch), Allison (Vinessa Shaw), and beloved zombie Billy (Doug Jones) will be a part of this new film—and the same could be said about Thackery Binx (played by Sean Murray in his human form and voiced by Jason Marsden in his cat form), Jay ( Tobias Jelinek), and Ernie (Larry Bagby)... sorry, I mean "Ice". Personally, I think it would be great to get as much of the original gang back together as possible, especially if the new Hocus Pocus takes place in Salem.
It's worth noting that in 2018, a novelization of Hocus Pocus and a sequel novel (both written by A.W. Jantha) were released together in one hardcover titled Hocus Pocus & The All-New Sequel, with the sequel following Max and Allison's daughter 25 years after the events of the original film. There's no indication, however, that the new film will be based on this previously published sequel novel (although it would be an interesting story to see come to life on screen).
While Adam Shankman was previously set to direct Hocus Pocus 2, Anne Fletcher (Step Up, The Guilt Trip) is now going to direct the sequel due to Shankman directing Disenchanted (as mentioned in his Instagram post), although he'll still be executive producing the new film.
Right now plot details are being kept under wraps, so other than the Sanderson Sisters returning for another round of mischievous magic, we'll have to wait and see what spells Hocus Pocus 2 has in store for viewers, and we'll be keeping Daily Dead readers updated as more magical news is conjured up from the cauldron.
It’s all just a bunch of Hocus Pocus 2️⃣
Bette Midler, Sarah Jessica Parker, and Kathy Najimy will reprise their roles as the delightfully wicked Sanderson Sisters in #HocusPocus2, coming fall 2022 to #DisneyPlus. pic.twitter.com/gr3B0Z1JcA
— Disney+ (@disneyplus) May 20, 2021
Raised on a steady diet of R.L. Stine’s Goosebumps books and Are You Afraid of the Dark?, Derek has been fascinated with fear since he first saw ForeverWare being used on an episode of Eerie, Indiana.
When he’s not writing about horror as the Senior News Reporter for Daily Dead, Derek can be found daydreaming about the Santa Carla Boardwalk from The Lost Boys or reading Stephen King and Brian Keene novels.
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