'Hocus Pocus 3': What the Cast Has Said About Another Sequel
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Disney recently confirmed they're making a third 'Hocus Pocus' film
Hocus Pocus is officially becoming a trilogy.
In June 2023, Sean Bailey — president of Walt Disney Studios Motion Picture Production — confirmed a third film is in the works while discussing upcoming live-action projects in a profile published by The New York Times.
Though no further details have been announced yet, including a release date and casting, many of the stars have already expressed their desire to return. Some of the writers have even teased what a third film could be about.
Set almost 30 years after the events of the first film, the recent sequel shows the return of the famous Sanderson sisters (Bette Midler, Sarah Jessica Parker, and Kathy Najimy) as they run amok around Salem once again.
While the ending ties things up in a nice little bow for the trio of witches, the film includes an end credits scene that could open the door for another film.
Now that the third film has been confirmed, here's everything the cast and creators have said about the upcoming movie (and how the ending sets up the story).
(Warning: spoilers for Hocus Pocus 2 ahead)
What is the end credits scene in Hocus Pocus 2?
At the end of the film, the Sanderson sisters are defeated yet again with a little help from Becca (Whitney Peak) who is revealed to be a witch herself. After Winifred completes a dark spell called Magicæ Maxima to make her the most powerful witch of all, she quickly learns that it comes with a huge cost: the lives of her sisters.
After her sisters turn to dust yet again, Winifred pleads with Becca for her help. As the new owner of Winifred's spell book, Becca answers her request, performing a spell with her friends that reunites Winifred with her sisters in the afterlife.
As Becca and her newly minted coven walk down the street at the end of the film, delighted with their new magical abilities, they're followed by a bird identical to the one into which Mother Witch (Hannah Waddingham) shapeshifted at the beginning of the film.
In addition to that moment, the end credits scene teases the Sanderson sisters could return yet again. Back in Gilbert's Olde Salem Magic Shoppe, the proprietor's black cat Cobweb is seen climbing onto one of the shelves in the store. As he perches himself next to a box, the camera zooms in on the label: "B.F. CANDLE #2," insinuating there is another Black Flame Candle that could bring the sisters back again.
What has the cast said about returning for Hocus Pocus 3?
Before the third film was officially greenlit, the cast had already expressed their interest in reprising their iconic roles.
During the Hocus Pocus 2 premiere in N.Y.C., Parker teased that she would sign on for a third Hocus Pocus if Midler also joined the project.
"Bette is already starting rumors," she told Extra of the sequel. "I hitch my wagon to her star. If she wants to do a third one… No one says no to the Divine Miss M."
As for Najimy, she told PEOPLE that she's adamant about the "never say never" mantra. "It was fun, but it's not nothing. It's a lot, but who knows? ... Who knew that almost 30 years later we'd be doing this sequel?" she told PEOPLE, joking, "I think if we did it 30 years later again, well, there would be walkers and canes involved. The flying might just be a little one-foot blip off the ground."
What have the writers and producers said about a Hocus Pocus 3?
When speaking with The Hollywood Reporter in October 2022, executive producer Adam Shankman applauded director Anne Fletcher's depiction of Becca's storyline in Hocus Pocus 2. He suggested that the discovery of her magical abilities could hint at future projects for the franchise.
"Anne I think handled that really, really beautifully," Shankman told THR of Becca's fantastical findings. "We went back and forth on how that was going to work, if it was going to work, forever, and Anne was just like, 'This is what we're going to do.' And I think it's great. And it creates a lot of excitement about potential spinoffs."
What would Hocus Pocus 3 be about?
Following the sequel's release, fans have been running wild with theories about what a potential third movie could entail. A popular theory is that it could revolve around the newly introduced character Mother Witch, who gifted the Sanderson sisters with her spell book when they were younger.
As she appears to be following Becca's new coven at the end of the film (in bird form), some think that Mother Witch could become the big villain in a third movie — perhaps following Becca's new coven rising to power and potentially seeking help from the Sanderson sisters to defeat Mother Witch.
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