{"id":261035,"date":"2025-09-28T10:21:15","date_gmt":"2025-09-28T10:21:15","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/www.europesays.com\/us\/261035\/"},"modified":"2025-09-28T10:21:15","modified_gmt":"2025-09-28T10:21:15","slug":"will-there-be-a-hocus-pocus-3%e2%80%b2-deseret-news","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/www.europesays.com\/us\/261035\/","title":{"rendered":"Will there be a \u2018Hocus Pocus 3\u2032? \u2013 Deseret News"},"content":{"rendered":"

\u201cHocus Pocus\u201d had a dismal theatrical run, but 32 years later, its stars drew a huge crowd of dedicated fans at FanX<\/a> \u2014 filling a large room and leaving a long line out the door.<\/p>\n

\u201cHocus Pocus\u201d actors Vinessa Shaw, Doug Jones and Omri Katz spoke at a panel at Utah\u2019s annual pop culture convention. They answered questions about their individual projects, but mostly talked about \u201cHocus Pocus,\u201d a now-beloved Disney Halloween movie about three Salem witches who are accidentally resurrected for a night of mischief.<\/p>\n

The room was bursting with fans of all ages, including a few who were dressed as the Sanderson witches themselves. <\/p>\n

\"\"Elisa Kelley, of Tooele, and dressed as Winifred “Winnie” Sanderson, listens to panelists respond to a question during a panel comprised of three actors from the Disney film \u201cHocus Pocus,\u201d as part of the FanX Salt Lake Pop Culture and Comic Convention held at the Salt Palace Convention Center in Salt Lake City on Saturday, Sept. 27, 2025. | Isaac Hale, Deseret News \"\"Actors from the Disney film \u201cHocus Pocus,\u201d from left, Vinessa Shaw, who played Allison, Doug Jones, who played Billy Butcherson, and Omri Katz, who played Max Dennison, react as the audience greets them at the start of a panel as part of the FanX Salt Lake Pop Culture and Comic Convention held at the Salt Palace Convention Center in Salt Lake City on Saturday, Sept. 27, 2025. | Isaac Hale, Deseret News \"\"Charolette Jewkes, of Bluffdale, laughs as her question is answered during a panel comprised of three actors from the Disney film \u201cHocus Pocus,\u201d as part of the FanX Salt Lake Pop Culture and Comic Convention held at the Salt Palace Convention Center in Salt Lake City on Saturday, Sept. 27, 2025. | Isaac Hale, Deseret News \"\"An attendee records video as actors from the Disney film \u201cHocus Pocus,\u201d from left, Vinessa Shaw, who played Allison, Doug Jones, who played Billy Butcherson, and Omri Katz, who played Max Dennison, speak during a panel as part of the FanX Salt Lake Pop Culture and Comic Convention held at the Salt Palace Convention Center in Salt Lake City on Saturday, Sept. 27, 2025. | Isaac Hale, Deseret News \"\"Actors from the Disney film \u201cHocus Pocus,\u201d from left, Vinessa Shaw, who played Allison, Doug Jones, who played Billy Butcherson, and Omri Katz, who played Max Dennison, gesture to the crowd before taking a selfie at the end of a panel as part of the FanX Salt Lake Pop Culture and Comic Convention held at the Salt Palace Convention Center in Salt Lake City on Saturday, Sept. 27, 2025. | Isaac Hale, Deseret News \"\"Actors from the Disney film \u201cHocus Pocus,\u201d from right, Vinessa Shaw, who played Allison, Doug Jones, who played Billy Butcherson, and Omri Katz, who played Max Dennison, take a selfie with the crowd at the end of a panel as part of the FanX Salt Lake Pop Culture and Comic Convention held at the Salt Palace Convention Center in Salt Lake City on Saturday, Sept. 27, 2025. | Isaac Hale, Deseret News The lasting impact of \u2018Hocus Pocus\u2019<\/p>\n

Jones, who played zombie Billy Butcherson in the film, said its poor box office performance in 1993 meant the cast assumed the film would be \u201clost forever.\u201d<\/p>\n

Jones noted that the film came out in July instead of October, when a Halloween movie might have been more popular, and it was advertised as a comedy instead of a family-friendly Halloween movie.<\/p>\n

\u201cThe marketing was part of our problem, and the time of year,\u201d he said. \u201cIt kind of fizzled at the box office.\u201d <\/p>\n

But throughout the years, people bought the VHS tapes, rented DVDs, tuned in on the Disney Channel for reruns and streamed it online. Now, \u201cHocus Pocus\u201d is regularly rated<\/a> as one of the best Halloween films<\/a> of all time.<\/p>\n

Katz said the cast didn\u2019t realize the movie had become such a classic until its 20th anniversary<\/a>, when they spoke at a D23 expo.<\/p>\n

\u201cAt the very end, we all went outside to just get some fresh air and talk,\u201d he recounted. \u201cAnd we literally got mobbed by it felt like hundreds of fans. It probably wasn\u2019t, but for me being out of the spotlight for a long time, I literally was kind of freaked out.\u201d<\/p>\n

\"\"Omri Katz, who played Max Dennison in the Disney film \u201cHocus Pocus,\u201d speaks during a panel as part of the FanX Salt Lake Pop Culture and Comic Convention held at the Salt Palace Convention Center in Salt Lake City on Saturday, Sept. 27, 2025. | Isaac Hale, Deseret News <\/p>\n

Shaw agreed that the moment was a turning point for the cast.<\/p>\n

\u201cWe were just impressed with this huge fandom that we didn\u2019t know existed,\u201d she said.<\/p>\n

A sequel, \u201cHocus Pocus 2,\u2033 was released in 2022, although Shaw, Jones and Katz were not part of it.<\/p>\n

Behind the scenes of \u2018Hocus Pocus\u2019<\/p>\n

The actors shared some of their favorite memories of filming. Shaw highlighted director Kenny Ortega\u2019s energy on set. <\/p>\n

\"\"Vinessa Shaw, who played Allison in the Disney film \u201cHocus Pocus,\u201d speaks during a panel as part of the FanX Salt Lake Pop Culture and Comic Convention held at the Salt Palace Convention Center in Salt Lake City on Saturday, Sept. 27, 2025. | Isaac Hale, Deseret News <\/p>\n

\u201cHe\u2019s so magnetic as a person and just infused that in this movie,\u201d she said.<\/p>\n

Jones shared that he was a \u201chuge fan\u201d of Bette Midler, who played Winifred Sanderson, and was shocked by her witchy transformation on set. <\/p>\n

\u201cThere she is with buck teeth and no eyebrows,\u201d he joked. \u201cI giggled.\u201d<\/p>\n

Jones\u2019 most interesting story, however, involves an infamous scene<\/a> where his zombie character coughs up dust and several live moths. According to Jones, the moths were real, and he did have to hold them in his mouth to film the scene. <\/p>\n

To make the scene work, Jones had a dental dam with two retainers and a latex sheet that would prevent the moths from flying down his throat. However, there was a mishap the first time they filmed the sequence.<\/p>\n

\"\"Doug Jones, who played Billy Butcherson in the Disney film \u201cHocus Pocus,\u201d speaks during a panel as part of the FanX Salt Lake Pop Culture and Comic Convention held at the Salt Palace Convention Center in Salt Lake City on Saturday, Sept. 27, 2025. | Isaac Hale, Deseret News <\/p>\n

\u201cThere was a moth trainer on set. That\u2019s a job,\u201d Jones said to uproarious laughter from the crowd. \u201cCamera\u2019s rolling, sound\u2019s going, and the moth trainer was putting these in my mouth, and then they clap your mouth shut. … And right before Kenny Ortega yells action, a light explodes.\u201d<\/p>\n

The crew fixed the light, but because Jones had to wait with the moths and dust in his mouth longer than expected, the stunt did not go as planned.<\/p>\n

\u201cI\u2019ve had an intruder in my mouth. And so what do your saliva glands do?\u201d he said. The cameras started rolling, so Jones opened his mouth and … \u201cMud comes out,\u201d he said. \u201cThe poor moth is right in a waterfall.\u201d<\/p>\n

The crew had to reset the scene. Thankfully, take two was successful. <\/p>\n

Will there be a \u2018Hocus Pocus 3\u2019?<\/p>\n

The stars don\u2019t know much about a third \u201cHocus Pocus\u201d movie, but they confirmed that it is in development and they would be open to returning to their characters.<\/p>\n

\"\"Actors from the Disney film \u201cHocus Pocus,\u201d from left, Vinessa Shaw, who played Allison, Doug Jones, who played Billy Butcherson, and Omri Katz, who played Max Dennison, listen to an attendee\u2019s question during a panel as part of the FanX Salt Lake Pop Culture and Comic Convention held at the Salt Palace Convention Center in Salt Lake City on Saturday, Sept. 27, 2025. | Isaac Hale, Deseret News <\/p>\n

\u201cWe\u2019ve heard as much as you have,\u201d Katz said. \u201c\u2018Hocus Pocus 3\u2019 is being written, apparently. Whether any of us are in it or not, we don\u2019t know … I haven\u2019t gotten a call yet.\u201d<\/p>\n

Katz said he would love to return for another sequel. <\/p>\n

\u201cI want these kids to come back as adults,\u201d Katz said.<\/p>\n

Jones thanked the fans for making \u201cHocus Pocus\u201d into the success it is today.<\/p>\n

\u201cYou guys made it … 29 years later, when \u2018Hocus Pocus 2\u2032 was being made, that\u2019s only because of the success of the first one,\u201d he said. \u201cSo thank you. God bless you all for that.\u201d<\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"\u201cHocus Pocus\u201d had a dismal theatrical run, but 32 years later, its stars drew a huge crowd of…\n","protected":false},"author":3,"featured_media":261036,"comment_status":"","ping_status":"","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"footnotes":""},"categories":[28],"tags":[171,53,67,132,68,424],"class_list":{"0":"post-261035","1":"post","2":"type-post","3":"status-publish","4":"format-standard","5":"has-post-thumbnail","7":"category-movies","8":"tag-entertainment","9":"tag-movies","10":"tag-united-states","11":"tag-unitedstates","12":"tag-us","13":"tag-utah"},"share_on_mastodon":{"url":"https:\/\/pubeurope.com\/@us\/115281427783078595","error":""},"_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.europesays.com\/us\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/261035","targetHints":{"allow":["GET"]}}],"collection":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.europesays.com\/us\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts"}],"about":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.europesays.com\/us\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/types\/post"}],"author":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.europesays.com\/us\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/users\/3"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.europesays.com\/us\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/comments?post=261035"}],"version-history":[{"count":0,"href":"https:\/\/www.europesays.com\/us\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/261035\/revisions"}],"wp:featuredmedia":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.europesays.com\/us\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media\/261036"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.europesays.com\/us\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media?parent=261035"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"category","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.europesays.com\/us\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/categories?post=261035"},{"taxonomy":"post_tag","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.europesays.com\/us\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/tags?post=261035"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}