Fans of the Hocus Pocus films are going crazy for a new range of products from budget retailer Poundland.
03.10.2022 - 16:41 / foxnews.com
It's really all just a bunch of hocus pocus! Just in time for Halloween, a sequel to the spooky "Hocus Pocus" is out on Disney+, but keen-eyed fans noticed some significant changes to at least one Sanderson Sister. You may have noticed that the infamous creepy-crooked smile of Mary Sanderson, played by Kathy Najimy, is inverted or backwards in the new "Hocus Pocus 2" film, but Najimy is now revealing there is a reason.
Mary, the middle sister, had a smile that slanted downwards to the left when you viewed her in the original film, but in "Hocus Pocus 2," it now slants downwards to the right. The infamous crooked smile of Mary Sanderson, portrayed by Kathy Najimy had a visible shift in slant from the first movie to the second.
(Walt Disney Pictures/2022 Disney Enterprises, Inc. All Rights Reserved) Najimy told Entertainment Weekly that it was no accident.
"It's on the other side mainly because it's so hard for me to do it on the side I did it on 30 years ago. I'm sure the fans are going to go into deep detail about why it's on the other side," she said.
She continued by saying, "We can justify it because there's a scene at the beginning where Winnie slaps me, and my mouth goes to the other side, and then she slaps me again and it goes to the other side, and sticks." Winifred, the eldest and most domineering Sanderson sister, is portrayed by Bette Midler. Kathy Najimy originally improvised the crooked smile for the 1993 film "Hocus Pocus." (Dimitrios Kambouris/Getty Images for Disney) Najimy, who improvised the quirk in her character during production of the original 1993 film says, "This is a big comedy, so you don't have to be subtle or have a 40-page Shakespearean backstory," in reference to the changing of her smile.
.Fans of the Hocus Pocus films are going crazy for a new range of products from budget retailer Poundland.
Zack Sharf Texas mother Jamie Gooch has gone viral after warning parents about the danger of letting their children watch “Hocus Pocus 2,” which started streaming Sept. 30 on Disney+. The film finds Bette Midler, Sarah Jessica Parker and Kathy Najimy reprising their roles as the Sanderson sisters, a trio of child-hungry witches. Gooch first warned parents about the film on social and then joined CBS’ local Texas affiliate KWTX for a now-viral interview. “A worst case scenario is: you unleash hell on your kids and in your home,” Gooch said. “The whole movie is based on witches harvesting children for blood sacrifices.” “Do not watch this film,” she continued. “Everybody thinks it’s fake and innocent, but they could be casting any type of spell that they want to, anything could be coming through that TV screen into your home.”
Belissa Escobedo is a Los Angeles-raised Chicana, the biggest cat mum ever (self-proclaimed), a former theatre kid, possibly America Ferrera’s long-lost baby sister (Just kidding. More on that later), and Izzy in the highly anticipated Disney+ Original movie Hocus Pocus 2. You may recognise Escobedo from her time as Natalie Garcia in The Baker and the Beauty, but on 30th September, she is making her way to Salem alongside the Sanderson Sisters.
While eagle-eyed fans may have noticed Kathy Najimy’s Hocus Pocus 2 smile looked different in the Disney+ sequel, the actress had a good reason for switching things up.
The Sanderson sisters ride again! Bette Midler, Sarah Jessica Parker and Kathy Najimy reprise their roles as Winnie, Sarah and Mary in Hocus Pocus 2 — and the new movie is packed with references to the original.
The Sanderson sisters are back and bewitching as ever in “Hocus Pocus 2”, the long-awaited sequel to the 1993 Halloween classic.
“Hocus Pocus 2” sees the return of the witches alongside some new characters. A black cat named Cobweb reminds us of Thackery Binx from the first film.
“Hocus Pocus 2,” now streaming exclusively on Disney+. Returning to reprise their original roles include Bette Midler as Winifred Sanderson, Sarah Jessica Parker as Sarah Sanderson, Kathy Najimy as Mary Sanderson and Doug Jones as William “Billy Butcherson.” Sadly, as you’ll find out from the following recap, Thackery Binx won’t be returning for the spooky sequel.
Have you ever wondered what it would be like to stay at the "Hocus Pocus" Cottage? Well, now is the time — if you dare. On Oct. 20, 2022, the Sanderson Sisters are inviting two guests to stay in a recreation of the Hocus Pocus Cottage in Salem, Massachusetts. The 300-year-old cottage was recreated for fans of the movie to visit exclusively and get into the Halloween spirit. One room in the cottage includes a large cauldron, in honor of the witches that once lived there. (Helynn Ospina) But on October 12, 2022, at 1p.m.
, the long-awaited sequel to the 1993 Halloween classic.Bette Midler, Kathy Najimy and Sarah Jessica Parker reprise their roles as Winnifred, Mary and Sarah Sanderson, respectively, in the new film, which finds the trio resurrected once again by a group of teen friends — Becca (Whitney Peak), Cassie (Lilia Buckingham), and Izzy (Belissa Escobedo) — who light a new version of the infamous Black Flame Candle.However, when they return to wreak havoc on Salem — this time seeking revenge on the town's mayor, a descendant of the puritanical reverend who originally exiled them (both played by Tony Hale) — they find that a few things have changed.For one, the Sanderson Witch Museum has been reopened as a magic shop, run by a man named Gilbert (Sam Richardson), who claims to have witnessed the witches' first night of mayhem back in the '90s. But that's far from the only callback to the original.
Some things never change. Hocus Pocus is back with an all-new sequel nearly 30 years after the original hit theaters, but the Disney+ movie cast says the biggest change is that the film actually has fans this time around.
Anna Tingley If you purchase an independently reviewed product or service through a link on our website, Variety may receive an affiliate commission. The Salem witch sisters are back for a straight-to-streamer reunion this week with the release of “Hocus Pocus 2,” the highly anticipated sequel to the 1993 cult classic. The reboot arrives on Disney+ on Friday, Sept. 30. Bette Middler, Sarah Jessica Parker and Kathy Najimy reprise their roles as the Sanderson sisters in the reboot, nearly three decades after their fabulously flamboyant performances turned what was expected to be a typical comedy with fleeting success into a campy cult favorite that has become a Halloween staple for millions across the country. Read More: The ‘Hocus Pocus’ Sequel Has Created Some Truly Insane (And Inspired) Merch
“Hocus Pocus 2.” And among critics, the sequel is faring better than its predecessor originally did — but only just.For the most part, reviews seem to be split between enjoying the nostalgia of “Hocus Pocus 2,” and wanting it to build more upon the original. Where The Hollywood Reporter’s Lovia Gyarkye argues that the sequel “honors its history without knowing quite how to move beyond it,” and IndieWire’s Jude Dry says it “hews closely to the original, perhaps a little too much,” others disagree.The AV Club’s Phil Pirrello wrote that “Using ‘Hocus Pocus’ more like a modular foundation than sacrosanct canon, director Anne Fletcher (Netflix’s “Dumplin’”) and screenwriter Jen D’Angelo find an inventive way of expanding upon the OG movie by reaching into the main characters’ past and softening the trio of witches’ more sinister edges as they once again wreak their unique, PG-brand of havoc on the town of Salem.”IGN’s Amelia Emberwing noted that it’s odd the movie doesn’t film in Salem, but nonetheless, “It’s wonderfully nostalgic that ‘Hocus Pocus 2’ feels like the Disney Channel Original Movies of yore.”Really, critics are just happy to see Bette Midler, Kathy Najimy and Sarah Jessica Parker back together again as the beloved witchy trio.
she was “dismayed” she couldn’t reprise her role as Dani Dennison in, Thora Birch spoke with ET on the red carpet at the Power of Women event, where she explained that there were attempts made to have her return for the sequel and shared whether she’s planning to watch.Nearly 30 years after was released, the new film reunites Bette Midler, Sarah Jessica Parker and Kathy Najimy as the Sanderson sisters, a trio of witches who are resurrected. In the original, Birch was one of the kids caught up in all the chaos and mayhem that followed their return to Salem, Massachusetts. Although Birch wasn’t included in the sequel, she says “there were three options we had for how to bring Dani back, all of which I was excited by.” However, “by the time they got around to filming, I was already on something else,” she continues, explaining that she was working on another project. As she explained earlier in the year, while on the set of her new Lifetime movie, , “I was working on something else when they were filming,” she said at the time, offering that “otherwise I was definitely going to be there on set with the girls.” That said, there seems to be no ill will, with Birch revealing that she plans to stream the new film.
Peter Debruge Chief Film Critic What strange sorcery is this that “Hocus Pocus” — a so-so comedy turned campy cult favorite starring Bette Midler, Sarah Jessica Parker and Kathy Najimy as absolutely fabulous Salem witch sisters — should be getting a sequel nearly three decades after its 1993 release? At the time, Variety speculated that, were it not for the film’s three stars, “‘Hocus Pocus’ wouldn’t seem out of place on the Disney Channel, and perhaps belongs there.” (Its director, Kenny Ortega, would go on to helm the “High School Musical” franchise for the cabler.) In a sense, that’s what’s happened with this follow-up, aimed to breathe some life into the graveyard that is Disney+. The sequel’s existence owes less to popular demand (the original earned a respectable $39.3 million stateside and went on to become a Halloween season staple) than the realization that the film had tapped into preteens’ fascination with witchcraft before Harry Potter came along. It can be no coincidence that the new feature lifts so much of its look and feel from that franchise — with eye of newt, a dead man’s head and some aspects of “The Craft” tossed in for good measure. In “Hocus Pocus 2,” the three teens called upon to save Salem from the Sanderson sisters’ return are themselves budding witches, which means the movie is less about scaring kids away from magic than indulging their post-Potter junior wizarding fantasies.