By Brian Gallagher for Dailymail.com 00:33 05 Jun 2023, updated 00:37 05 Jun 2023
Months after Hocus Pocus 2 debuted on the Disney Plus streaming service, Sean Bailey, President of Walt Disney Studios Motion Picture Production, confirmed Hocus Pocus 3 is happening.
Bailey announced in a new interview with The New York Times that a third installment in the Halloween series is underway.
“Yes, Hocus Pocus 3 is happening,” Bailey confirmed in the interview, although no further details were given.
The news isn’t particularly surprising given the success of Hocus Pocus 2, which set a new record of 2.7 billion views in its first week on Disney Plus.
There’s no confirmation yet that Bette Midler, Sarah Jessica Parker and Kathy Najimy will be returning as the Sanderson Sisters, although it’s likely.
Continuing: Months after Hocus Pocus 2 debuted on the Disney Plus streaming service, Sean Bailey, President of Walt Disney Studios Motion Picture Production, confirmed that Hocus Pocus 3 is taking place. Continued: “Yes, Hocus Pocus 3 is happening,” Bailey confirmed in the interview, although no further details were given
The original hoax came out in 1993 and follows the three witches known as the Sanderson Sisters – Winifred (Midler), Sarah (Parker) and Mary (Najimy) – who are accidentally resurrected on Halloween – 300 years after their execution in Salem.
The film also starred Omri Katz and Thora Birch as children, alongside Vinessa Shaw and Doug Jones, bringing the witches back to life.
The film grossed $45 million at the box office and became a cult classic upon its release on home video.
Freeform aired the film on Halloween each year, with 8.2 million viewers watching the 25th anniversary release in 2018 and an anniversary special filmed at Hollywood Forever Cemetery.
While the stars had often spoken out about their interest in returning for a sequel, development finally got underway in 2019.
Anne Fletcher has signed on to direct, from a screenplay by original Hocus Pocus writer David Kirschner, along with Jen D’Angelo and Blake Harris.
Rounding out the cast were Sam Richardson, Tony Hale, Doug Jones, Whitney Peak, Belissa Escobedo, Lilia Buckingham and Froy Gutierrez.
Viewership was spread across a wide range of demographics, with 2-11 year olds, 18-34 year olds and 35-49 year olds accounting for 25% each.
Original: The original Hocus Pocus was released in 1993 and is about the three witches known as the Sanderson Sisters – Winifred (Midler), Sarah (Parker) and Mary (Najimy) – who are accidentally resurrected on Halloween – 300 years after their execution – cast by Salem: The film also starred Omri Katz and Thora Birch (center) as the children who brought the witches back to life, alongside Vinessa Shaw and Doug Jones. Development: While the stars had often spoken about their interest in returning for a sequel, this finally went into development in 2019
Hispanic audiences also made up about 21% of viewers, while the sequel also brought the original 1993 film Hocus Pocus back into the top 10.
The original film racked up 774 million minutes of viewing, which was good for seventh place on the September 27-October 2 charts.
It’s also worth noting that Nielsen’s streaming rankings only take into account viewing on a TV screen, meaning mobile viewing isn’t counted.