A third “Hocus Pocus” film is officially in development, Walt Disney Pictures president Sean Bailey has confirmed.
In a profile with The New York Times, Bailey stated that “Yes, ‘Hocus Pocus 3’ is happening” when discussing additional upcoming live-action projects in development at the company.
“Hocus Pocus 3” comes after the success of the 2022 sequel “Hocus Pocus 2,” which saw Bette Midler, Sarah Jessica Parker and Kathy Najimy reprise their children-hungry witching roles. The sequel broke records amongst the Nielson Top 10 streaming charts, taking home the largest opening weekend with 2.7 billion minutes viewed following its Sept. 30 premiere. The Disney+ movie also became the most watched original film for Disney+ over the frame of the first three days of release.
Though not all original “Hocus Pocus” characters were featured in “Hocus Pocus 2,” screenwriter Jen D’Angelo hinted at a potential sequel that would showcase Omri Katz’s Max Dennison and Vinessa Shaw’s Allison Watts.
“We tried so hard to get the original cast back for cameos and then it just kept not working out for one reason or the other,” D’Angelo told Variety. “But I’m hoping in ‘Hocus Pocus 3,’ we’ll see Max and Alison living in California.”
“Hocus Pocus 2” was directed by Anne Fletcher while Steven Haft served as a co-producer alongside producer Lynn Harris and associate producer Bonnie Hlinomaz. David Kirschner, Adam Shankman and Ralph Winter served as executive producers.
In Variety’s review of “Hocus Pocus 2,” chief film critic Peter Debruge compared the film favorably to its predecessor, saying that the follow-up ”is actually the better made film, even if it amounts to little more than a stealth remake.”