Millennials blinked and now one of theirfavorite moviesfrom when they were kids, is aHalloween classic. As the spooky season approaches, 1993 fantasy filmHocus Pocusis coming back to dominateDisney+charts, and this past week the movie starringBette Midler(Beaches),Sarah Jessica Parker(And Just Like That) andKathy Najimy(Sister Act) became one of the #9 most-watched titles on the Mickey Mouse platform.
Hocus Pocustells the story of the Sanderson sisters, three witcheswho get resurrectedby accident inSalem, Massachusettsafter a teenage boy inadvertently lights a cursed candle. Now, Max (Omri Katz) and his little sister Dani (Thora Birch) will have to find a way to send the three witches back to where they came from before they wreak havoc during Halloween. The comedy was directed byKenny Ortega, who went on to helm other big titles such asMichael Jackson: This Is Itand theHigh School Musicaltrilogy.
If you look back onHocus Pocus' performancein the early 90s, you’d never call it a hit: The movie has a lackluster40% approval rateonRotten Tomatoesand failed to lure moviegoers into theaters, raking up only $51 million against a $28 million budget. However, the adventureended up conquering a massive fanbasethrough reruns and became one of the favorite movies of an entire generation. Not by chance, Disney capitalized on the nostalgia and brought the franchise back almost thirty years later withHocus Pocus 2— once again starring Midler, Parker and Najimy.
Hocus PocusIntroduced Doug Jones To A Whole Generation
Hocus Pocusalso featured a performance of an actor who became famous for his distinct full-body performance. In the movie,Doug Jonesplayed Billy, one of the witches' ex-paramour, who was poisoned and resurrected as a zombie three hundred years later. Jones went on to play other significant roles in major titles, like the title character and The Pale Man inPan’s Labyrinth, Abe Sapien inHellboyandHellboy: The Golden Armyand Saru inStar Trek: Discovery.
Earlier this year, Midler spoke out aboutHocus Pocus 3and revealed that she hasn’t seen a script yet, but joked that Disney should speed up production “while we’re still breathing.” Meanwhile, screenwriterJen D’Angeloconfirmed that the script is being written, but it’s taking its baby steps:
“We’re still in the story phase, we’re still working on it. We’ve been working on some ideas. It’s been fun to dive back into that world and we have so many directions in which to go and so many new characters to explore. We’ve only scratched the surface of Hannah Waddingham’s [‘Ted Lasso’] mother witch.”
You can streamHocus PocusandHocus Pocus 2on Disney+.
Hocus Pocus
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