From Entertainment Weekly-
Hocus Pocus 2 gets a release date as Disney unveils first footage: ‘Lock up your children!’
The witches are back — and there’s hell to pay this fall.
Disney has conjured up the release date for Hocus Pocus 2 out of its upfronts presentation, with the studio announcing Tuesday that the movie will hit the Disney+ streaming service on Sept. 30.
Bette Midler, Sarah Jessica Parker, and Kathy Najimy — all of whom starred in director Kenny Ortega’s 1993 original as the evil Sanderson sisters of Salem — reprised their roles for the sequel, which audiences got a sneak peek at for the first time at Disney’s presentation.
The rough-cut footage showed two young girls lighting the Black Flame Candle, which summons the central witches as Midler squeals, “Lock up your children! Yes, Salem, we’re back!”
They then launch into a musical number — a cover of Elton John’s “The Bitch Is Back” — while Billy Butcherson (Doug Jones) and a still-unnamed character played by Sam Richardson also appear. Tony Hale, who plays the mayor of Salem, is also featured in the clip.
Specifics are slim on the film’s plot, though EW exclusively confirmed that Thora Birch would not reprise the role of Dani Dennison from the first film. We also broke news that RuPaul’s Drag Race stars Ginger Minj, Kornbread “The Snack” Jeté, and Kahmora Hall will play drag versions of Winifred, Mary, and Sarah, respectively, in a scene that takes place at a drag show attended by the trio of Sanderson sisters.
Ted Lasso Emmy winner Hannah Waddingham also has a role in the film, which reportedly follows three modern-day teens (played by Gossip Girl’s Whitney Peak, Dirt’s Lilia Buckingham, and American Horror Stories’ Belissa Escobedo) and their attempt to stop the Sanderson sisters’ plot for revenge following their resurrection 29 years after the events of the first film.
“I am beyond thrilled to be involved in the sequel to a film that is as beloved as Hocus Pocus,” sequel director Anne Fletcher said last year in a statement about the upcoming film. “Fans around the world have embraced these characters and have made this film a Halloween tradition whose popularity continues to grow, and how lucky am I to be back at Disney with these three extraordinarily talented ladies in the iconic roles they created, as well as our fabulous new additions to the cast?”
Hocus Pocus 2 premieres Sept. 30 on Disney+.
Michele also contributes theme park news for Fox 35 Orlando 11pm news and on the radio on WDBO.
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