We may not have seen the last of the Sanderson Sisters after all, as a Hocus Pocus sequel is reportedly in the works at Disney. According to a new report from Collider, Workaholics writer and co-producer Jen D’Angelo has been hired by the House of Mouse to write the screenplay for Hocus Pocus 2. The project is intended to be a part of the company’s Disney+ streaming service, but as pre-production has only just begun, there’s no telling just how soon we might be able to check out the sequel on the small screen. Still, for any huge fan of the original movie, Hocus Pocus 2 alone would certainly be worth the price of a subscription.
Per the report, word is D’Angelo is expected to creatively find the right way to bring back its three lead actresses from the original movie to reprise their roles as the Sanderson Sisters for Hocus Pocus 2. This suggests that the plan as of now is for the project to be a direct sequel which continues the events of the 1993 classic, rather than rebooting the story entirely with new actresses playing the Sanderson Sisters (or a similar set of witchy characters). However, because the project is still very early in development, no talent has yet been signed on, and nobody from the first Hocus Pocus has been officially attached to the sequel. Still, the folks at Disney are hopeful all three lead actresses will return, though it remains to be seen if they’ll be limited to a smaller appearance or if they’ll be the primary antagonists again.
Starring in the original movie are Bette Midler as Winifred, Sarah Jessica Parker as Sarah, and Kathy Najimy as Mary – a trio of sibling witches who are inadvertently resurrected on Halloween by a teenager in Salem, Massachusetts. Co-starring with the three in the first Hocus Pocus Omri Katz, Thora Birch, and Vinessa Shaw. The screenplay was written by Mick Garris and Neil Cuthbert, based on an idea by Garris and producer David Kirschner. Kenny Ortega directed the cult classic movie. Although the project fell short at the box office, when it first debuted in 1993, repeated viewings every Halloween season have since made it a cult classic. The movie plays on television every October, forever keeping it fresh in the minds of its biggest fans.
Related: Tina Fey’s Disney Witch Movie Is Not a Sequel to Hocus Pocus
Rumors of a Hocus Pocus sequel have swirled for years. In 2017, it was reported original co-writer Mick Garris was writing a new screenplay for a reboot of the movie. Soon after, Midler made it clear she thought rebooting the cult classic was a very bad idea, and for whatever reason, the planned project apparently fizzled out. The movie then received a literary sequel in 2018 with the release of the book Hocus Pocus and the All-New Sequel, reigniting hopes from fans to one day see a true live-action follow-up movie. In the book, Max and Allison’s daughter Poppy treks to the Sanderson house on Halloween to prove there’s nothing real to the stories she’s heard about them. It’s not clear if this plot will have any creative influence on Hocus Pocus 2.
It’s the Halloween season, so while we await for more news on Hocus Pocus 2, it’s the perfect time to catch another viewing of the 1993 original. If a sequel has to happen, let’s hope it can come at least a little bit close to how amazing the original one continues to be. This news comes to us from Collider.
