It sounds like Hocus Pocus is hoping to rekindle the magic. After years of rumors, it was announced on Wednesday that Disney’s 1993 supernatural comedy is getting a sequel. The film’s original trio of stars — Bette Midler, Sarah Jessica Parker and Kathy Najimy — have yet to be confirmed, but Variety reports that insiders would consider their return to be ideal, rather than having to reboot the project from scratch.
What has been confirmed so far is that the Hocus Pocus 2 will be exclusive to Disney+, with Adam Shankman tapped to direct a script from Workaholics writer Jen D’Angelo. Shankman is also slated to direct the Enchantment sequel, currently titled Disenchantment, though it’s unclear which of the two films will start production first.
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The film’s stars played the three Sanderson sisters, who were cursed in Salem, Massachusetts back in 1693, only to be resurrected 300 years later. While they have to come to terms with the drastic differences of day-to-day life three centuries later, their biggest hurdle is the fact that their beloved Halloween has lost all meaning.
The film didn’t do spectacularly well in theaters, though became a certified cult classic in the year’s since, particularly around Halloween, so at least the sisters’ efforts weren’t in vain. It’s also that devoted following that kept asking for a sequel, which was finally moving forward back in October.
At the time, Collider reported that D’Angelo was tasked with finding a way to bring back the original cast, as Disney was hopeful that they’d be involved in some capacity.
On Halloween last year, Parker posted a still from Hocus Pocus on her Instagram. While it didn’t actually indicate her involvement, it did spark a lot of expectations in the comments section. Meanwhile, Midler seemed very enthusiastic about returning when Entertainment Tonight about the project in November, joking that “I hope they get to me before I’m a corpse.”
“We wanna fly again,” she continued. “I hope Disney+ is a big success and I hope we get to do it, because [Winifred] is, of course, one of my favorite characters.”
Along with Hocus Pocus 2, Disney+ has been working on beefing up its original content offerings. Along with a second season of The Mandalorian coming sometime in the fall, the streamer will be home to a reboot of Proud Family. It’s also working on a revival of Lizzie McGuire, though star Hillary Duff is hoping the series gets shifted to Hulu, which is what happened to the Live, Simon series adaptation, Love, Victor.
