The 1993 box office failure Hocus Pocus (watch it HERE) has gone on to become such a beloved Halloween classic, it’s no surprise that the movie is getting a sequel nearly thirty years later. Hocus Pocus 2 will be released through the Disney+ streaming service sometime in fall 2022, and as part of today’s Disney+ Day event the company has unveiled a first look image that shows Better Midler, Kathy Najimy, and Sarah Jessica Parker back in their roles as the Sanderson sisters! Here it is:
Directed by Anne Fletcher, Hocus Pocus 2 has the following synopsis:
Picking up 29 years after a teen named Max lit the Black Flame Candle and resurrected the three 17th-century child-essence-stealing sorceresses, Winifred (Midler), Sarah (Parker), and Mary (Najimy) are now looking for revenge. With the Sanderson Sisters back to terrorize Salem, it’s up to three high school students to stop them. How do you do that? By summoning the wrath of an enchantress, of course.
Those three high school students are Becca (Whitney Peak, Gossip Girl), Cassie (Lilia Buckingham, Dirt), and Izzy (Belissa Escobedo, American Horror Stories). Also in the cast are Hannah Waddingham (Ted Lasso) Tony Hale (Veep), Sam Richardson (Werewolves Within), Juju Brener (Vanquish), Froy Gutierrez (Teen Wolf), Taylor Paige (Earwig and the Witch), and newcomer Nina Kitchen. Doug Jones will be reprising the role of Billy Butcherson as well.
Directed by Kenny Ortega from a screenplay credited to Mick Garris and Neil Cuthbert (and based on story Garris crafted with David Kirschner), the first Hocus Pocus was about
a trio of witch sisters who have been cursed since 1963. The fearsome threesome is inadvertently resurrected 300 years later by a boy whose family has moved from Los Angeles to Salem. As they attempt to acclimate to the 20th century, they are horrified to discover that Halloween has become a holiday.
Jen D’Angelo, best known for scripting multiple episodes of the show Workaholics, wrote the screenplay for Hocus Pocus 2, which is currently filming. Fletcher’s other directorial credits include 27 Dresses, The Proposal, The Guilt Trip, Hot Pursuit, and Dumplin’.