“Hocus Pocus” had a dismal theatrical run, but 32 years later, its stars drew a huge crowd of dedicated fans at FanX — filling a large room and leaving a long line out the door.
“Hocus Pocus” actors Vinessa Shaw, Doug Jones and Omri Katz spoke at a panel at Utah’s annual pop culture convention. They answered questions about their individual projects, but mostly talked about “Hocus Pocus,” a now-beloved Disney Halloween movie about three Salem witches who are accidentally resurrected for a night of mischief.
The room was bursting with fans of all ages, including a few who were dressed as the Sanderson witches themselves.
The lasting impact of ‘Hocus Pocus’
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 “lost forever.”
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.
“The marketing was part of our problem, and the time of year,” he said. “It kind of fizzled at the box office.”
But throughout the years, people bought the VHS tapes, rented DVDs, tuned in on the Disney Channel for reruns and streamed it online. Now, “Hocus Pocus” is regularly rated as one of the best Halloween films of all time.
Katz said the cast didn’t realize the movie had become such a classic until its 20th anniversary, when they spoke at a D23 expo.
“At the very end, we all went outside to just get some fresh air and talk,” he recounted. “And we literally got mobbed by it felt like hundreds of fans. It probably wasn’t, but for me being out of the spotlight for a long time, I literally was kind of freaked out.”
Shaw agreed that the moment was a turning point for the cast.
“We were just impressed with this huge fandom that we didn’t know existed,” she said.
A sequel, “Hocus Pocus 2,″ was released in 2022, although Shaw, Jones and Katz were not part of it.
Behind the scenes of ‘Hocus Pocus’
The actors shared some of their favorite memories of filming. Shaw highlighted director Kenny Ortega’s energy on set.
“He’s so magnetic as a person and just infused that in this movie,” she said.
Jones shared that he was a “huge fan” of Bette Midler, who played Winifred Sanderson, and was shocked by her witchy transformation on set.
“There she is with buck teeth and no eyebrows,” he joked. “I giggled.”
Jones’ most interesting story, however, involves an infamous scene 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.
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.
“There was a moth trainer on set. That’s a job,” Jones said to uproarious laughter from the crowd. “Camera’s rolling, sound’s 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.”
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.
“I’ve had an intruder in my mouth. And so what do your saliva glands do?” he said. The cameras started rolling, so Jones opened his mouth and … “Mud comes out,” he said. “The poor moth is right in a waterfall.”
The crew had to reset the scene. Thankfully, take two was successful.
Will there be a ‘Hocus Pocus 3’?
The stars don’t know much about a third “Hocus Pocus” movie, but they confirmed that it is in development and they would be open to returning to their characters.
“We’ve heard as much as you have,” Katz said. “‘Hocus Pocus 3’ is being written, apparently. Whether any of us are in it or not, we don’t know … I haven’t gotten a call yet.”
Katz said he would love to return for another sequel.
“I want these kids to come back as adults,” Katz said.
Jones thanked the fans for making “Hocus Pocus” into the success it is today.
“You guys made it … 29 years later, when ‘Hocus Pocus 2′ was being made, that’s only because of the success of the first one,” he said. “So thank you. God bless you all for that.”