With Halloween right around the corner, everyone is watching their favorite movies of the season. One of the most iconic is the 1993 film, “Hocus Pocus.” The movie is set in Salem, Massachusetts and focuses on the story of three witches, the Sanderson sisters.
The film opens in 1693 Salem, when a character named Thackery wakes up to his sister, Emily, missing from her bed. He finds her in the witch’s cottage nearby and fails in his attempt at saving her, while also getting cursed and turned into an immortal cat.
The townspeople hanged the sisters for their crime. But, right before their death, they cast a spell that could potentially bring them back to life on a Halloween night. The sisters return 300 years later when a new kid in Salem, Max, his sister, Dani, and a friend named Allison fulfill their spell and bring them back to life. Now, it is up to them to try to stop the Sanderson sisters before they can fully become immortal before sunrise the next day.
Fans of “Hocus Pocus” have been patiently waiting for a return of the film, and it has been confirmed that there is a sequel in the works. “Hocus Pocus 2” is set to come out in fall 2022.
The original actresses who played the Sanderson witches will play their role again in the sequel. Sarah Jessica Parker played the ditzy sister, Sarah Sanderson; Bette Midler portrayed the wise leader of the coven, Winifred Sanderson and Kathy Najimy is returning to play her character, Mary Sanderson.
Parker and Midler took to social media to announce their return to the film. “Sistaaaahs! It’s been 300 years...But we’re BACK!” Midler tweeted in May 2021. Sarah Jessica Parker also announced their return through Instagram and made sure to tag her fellow co-stars.
As for the plot, the only information so far includes this description: “Three young women accidentally bring back the Sanderson Sisters to modern day Salem and must figure out how to stop the child-hungry witches from wreaking havoc on the world,” according to IMDb.
“Hocus Pocus 2” will be filmed entirely in Rhode Island, unlike the previous film that was in Massachusetts and Hollywood. Reports from 10 WJAR claim that the set is already being built as crews transform Lincoln, Rhode Island, into a movie scene from the 1600s.
Filming and production are making use of Chase Farm Park in Lincoln and historic buildings such as the Cranston Street Armory in Providence. The crew is expected to create the set in ten weeks for a total of two nights of filming, likely starting the first week of October. If you’re looking for a sneak peek, a TikTok went viral, showing a small village and Parker’s song from the first film “Come Little Children,” which adds an eerie atmosphere to the whole scene.
“Hocus Pocus 2” could not come soon enough. Meanwhile, all we can do is stick to our favorite Halloween films and patiently wait. Make sure to add “Hocus Pocus” to your list and prepare for next fall when the sequel will be released.
