Bette Midler Reveals Early Talks Are Underway for HOCUS POCUS 3

As BroadwayWorld previously reported, a third Hocus Pocus film is in the works at Disney! Now, one of the film's potential stars, the iconic Bette Midler has confirmed that talks are underway for a threequel.

"Now, they're kind of talking about a third, very gingerly and very gently," Midler revealed on a recent episode of The Jess Cagle Show. "They are. They're talking about a third. The second one was a huge success."

Hocus Pocus 2, released September 2022 on Disney+, was a massive success for the streaming platform. Within its first weekend of streaming, it was the #1 film premiere on Disney+ domestically to date. With 5.7 billion minutes viewed, the film became the fifth most streamed movie in 2022.

The film's screenwriter Jen D'Angelo said, "We've been working on some ideas, and it's been fun to dive back into that world and we have so many directions in which to go and so many new characters to explore," adding that she hopes to further explore Hannah Waddingham's Mother Witch, in particular. 

Upon the release of the sequel, Midler stated that she would "of course" sign on to do a third film and that she would "love to have a franchise."

Read more at Entertainment Weekly.

The sequel took place 29 years after someone lit the Black Flame Candle and resurrected the 17th-century Sanderson Sisters, bringing them back for revenge.

“Hocus Pocus 2” also starred Sam Richardson (“The Tomorrow War”), Doug Jones (“The Shape of Water”), Whitney Peak (“Gossip Girl”), Belissa Escobedo (“American Horror Stories”), Lilia Buckingham (“Dirt”), Froy Gutierrez (“Teen Wolf”), with Tony Hale (“Veep”) and Hannah Waddingham (“Ted Lasso”).

The film was directed by Anne Fletcher (“Dumplin,’” “The Proposal”) from a screenplay by Jen D’Angelo (“Workaholics”) and a story by David Kirschner (“Hocus Pocus,” “Chucky”) & Blake Harris, and Jen D’Angelo, produced by Lynn Harris (“King Richard,” “The Shallows”), with Ralph Winter (“Hocus Pocus,” “X-Men” franchise), David Kirschner (“Hocus Pocus,” “Chucky”), and Adam Shankman (“Disenchanted,” “Hairspray”) serving as executive producers.