Bette Midler Calls on Disney to Speed Up ‘Hocus Pocus 3’ and Get Script Finished: ‘Get Us While We’re Still Breathing. I Mean, God!’

Bette Midler is asking Disney to put the pedal to the metal when it comes to “Hocus Pocus 3.” While a third movie in the beloved Halloween franchise was officially announced in June 2022, Midler said on the QVC+ talk show “Busy This Week” (via Entertainment Weekly ) that she has yet to see a script. That’s only an issue for the actor since she’s not getting any younger, nor are her longtime co-stars Sarah Jessica Parker and Kathy Najimi.

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“I haven’t seen the script, but I’ve heard rumblings,” Midler said about the third movie. “I think if they’re gonna, they oughta, because time is not just marching, time is barrel-assing to the finish line. Get us while we’re still breathing, I mean, God!”

Screenwriter Jen D’Angelo confirmed to Entertainment Weekly last year following the end of the WGA strike that “Hocus Pocus 3” was still in development.

“We’re still in the story phase, we’re still working on it,” D’Angelo said. “We’ve been working on some ideas. 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. We’ve only scratched the surface of Hannah Waddingham’s mother witch.”

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“Ted Lasso” Emmy-winner Hannah Waddingham made her “Hocus Pocus” debut in the second installment, released in 2022 on Disney+. She played Mother Witch, a sinister woman who gifts the spell book to the young Sanderson sisters. D’Angelo said “anything’s on the table” for the third installment and “we for sure want to see [the sisters] again as adults.”

“I’m hoping that we are able to explore every aspect of these stories and take these characters on a bunch of fun adventures,” D’Angelo continued. “We don’t really know what it is, but we’re exploring all options and I think everybody is so delighted by the reaction that ‘Hocus Pocus 2’ got, and we’re excited to continue those stories.”

“Hocus Pocus 2” broke records on the Nielsen Top 10 streaming charts when it debuted last year, earning an opening weekend of 2.7 billion minutes watched. The movie also became the most-watched original film for Disney+ at the time of its release over its opening three-day frame. “Hocus Pocus 2” was directed by Anne Fletcher, who is also set to return to helm the third film.

'Hocus Pocus 3' Is 'Still in the Story Phase': 'We've Only Scratched the Surface of Hannah Waddingham's Mother Witch'