Hocus Pocus is now a must-watch during the Halloween season, but the original script was so different that, had the movie been made like that, it would have killed what made Hocus Pocus so great. Walt Disney Pictures has a movie for every occasion, and in 1993, it released a fantasy comedy that would become a Halloween classic: Hocus Pocus, directed by Kenny Ortega. Although it was a critical failure, time has been good to it and it’s now a cult classic, in big part thanks to annual airings on Disney Channel.
Hocus Pocus introduced the Sanderson Sisters – Winnifred (Bette Midler), Mary (Kathy Najimy), and Sarah (Sarah Jessica Parker) – who after casting a spell right before their execution in 1693, were brought back in 1993 after Max Dennison (Omri Katz) lit the Black Flame Candle during a full moon on Halloween night. In order to continue living, the Sanderson sisters needed to take the life out of the children of Salem before sunrise, and so Max, his sister Dani (Thora Birch), his crush Allison (Vinessa Shaw), and zombie Billy Butcherson (Doug Jones) had to rush to stop them. Hocus Pocus stood out for its comedic style and the performances of Midler, Najimy, and Parker, but the original plan for it would have taken it on a fully scary road that wouldn’t have worked.
Hocus Pocus Would Never Work If It Was Fully Scary
Speaking to EW, Vinessa Shaw shared that the original Hocus Pocus script was much scarier, and the witches were more traditional, similar to The Wizard of Oz, far from the comedic Sanderson Sisters everyone now knows. The tone of the story changed once Hocus Pocus started shooting, and that big change was definitely for the better. Although the Sanderson Sisters’ plan alone was scary, as they were about to kill the children of Salem, Hocus Pocus made it entertaining by not making the witches scary and instead leaving the movie’s comedy on their hands.
Getting rid of the scary tone of Hocus Pocus turned it into a family-friendly movie, which has been key in keeping its popularity. This allowed Hocus Pocus to reach a wider audience, and it keeps appealing to new generations of viewers, which wouldn’t have been possible had it been a scary movie. While Midler, Najimy, and Parker could have definitely played the Sanderson Sisters as fully scary witches, they became popular thanks to their slapstick humor, as they stood out from the traditional depiction of witches in film – and, truly, the only way the Sanderson Sisters’ arrival in the modern world could have worked was through comedy.
Hocus Pocus 2 Couldn’t Happen With The First Movie’s Original Plan
Almost three decades after the release of Hocus Pocus, a sequel, simply titled Hocus Pocus 2, was released on Disney+. Hocus Pocus 2 received mixed reviews, and one of its biggest weaknesses is its plot. The movie sees the Sanderson Sisters being inadvertently resurrected again, but this time, instead of wanting to take the life force out of the town’s children, the Sanderson Sisters wanted to cast a spell that would make them all powerful. Seeing the Sanderson Sisters adapt to the present year is among Hocus Pocus 2’s funniest and most memorable moments, and ultimately, what saved the movie was the performances of Midler, Najimy, and Parker, whose chemistry is still undeniable.
However, Hocus Pocus 2 couldn’t have happened with the first one’s original “scary” plan, as it would have been a very drastic and unbelievable change to see the Sandersons go from Three Stooges-like witches to full-on scary ones. The charm of Hocus Pocus mostly comes from the comedic skills of Midler, Najimy, and Parker, and had it been a scary movie, it wouldn’t have become a Halloween classic, and so the sequel would have never happened.