Bette Midler is urging Disney to speed up progress on a third Hocus Pocus film – see what the actress had to say below.
In 1993, Disney released the cult classic witch comedy film Hocus Pocus. After a long nearly three-decade wait, the film finally received a sequel in the form of Hocus Pocus 2. Now, Midler, who stars in the franchise as Winifred Sanderson alongside Sarah Jessica Parker and Kathy Najimy is pushing for a third film – and quick.
During a recent appearance on Busy Philipps’ QVC+ talk show Busy This Week, the hosts and Midler spoke about Hocus Pocus and the life it took on as a cult classic. When asked if there’s an update on a third movie, Midler replied: “I haven’t seen the script, but I’ve heard rumblings.”
Midler continued: “I think if they’re gonna, they oughta, because time is not just marching, time is barrel-assing to the finish line. Get us while we’re still breathing, I mean, God!”
Watch a clip of the conversation below.
In Hocus Pocus (1993), a trio of witch sisters (Midler, Parker and Najimy) are inadvertently resurrected from the dead by a teenage boy in Salem on Halloween night exactly 300 years after their demise.
Hocus Pocus 2 was speculated dating as far back as 2012, with a release originally scheduled for 2014. Then in 2017, it was reported that Disney was remaking Hocus Pocus as a television movie with original producer David Kirschner – but without the original cast, to the displeasure of fans.
Finally, Hocus Pocus 2 was confirmed by Disney back in 2020 with its core cast confirmed to return, and the movie premiered on September 30, 2022.
In a four-star review of Hocus Pocus 2, Nick Levine wrote for NME: “This thoroughly enjoyable film succeeds in offering a knowing (but not too knowing) spin on the campy original. When the sisters break into a rollicking rendition of ‘The Bitch Is Back’ – reworked as ‘The Witches Are Back’, obviously – one character deadpans: “Why are they singing?” It’s also really quite touching at the finish: a trick few sequels of this ilk manage to pull off.”
The post Bette Midler urges Disney to speed up ‘Hocus Pocus 3’ appeared first on NME.
