‘Hocus Pocus’ Cast Reunites After 22 Years [Photo]
Hocus Pocus is a Halloween classic and is an easy favorite when October rolls around each year. It is hard to believe that the movie, starring Omri Katz, Vinessa Shaw, Thora Birch, Bette Middler, Kathy Najimy, and Sarah Jessica Parker, is so wildly popular after all these years.
According to Too Fab, Katz (Max Dennison), Shaw (Allison) and Birch (Dani Dennison) got together on Halloween to share some memories and some good laughs. They posted some photos on social media, which absolutely delighted fans… but it also shocked them; These kids who you see on your television each year (perhaps multiple times a year) are no longer kids — but they are still friends, which is quite wonderful.
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Hocus Pocus tells the story of a brother and sister who move to Salem, Massachusetts, to start a new life with their parents. Salem, of course, being home to the witch trials of the 1690s, Max and Dani Dennison soon learn just how important Halloween is to the people of this city. While Dani is just a child and is generally delighted by the stories, her teen-aged brother, Max, is more than skeptical about the legends.
Developing an early crush on his classmate, Allison, Max finds himself at her house (coincidentally) while taking Dani out trick-or-treating. They get to talking about the three witches known as the Sanderson sisters (portrayed by Middler, Najimy, and Parker), and end up going to a closed-down museum that housed some of the prized possessions of Winifred, Sarah, and Mary.
Before long, Max discovers the “black flame candle” and decides to light it — just for fun.
Hocus Pocus goes on to show just how Max, Allison, Dani, and an immortal cat named Binx do everything they can to get rid of the three witches and to save the town’s children — who are needed to keep these the Sanderson sisters young (and alive).
The “Hocus Pocus” cast reunited on Halloween! All is right with the world. https://t.co/o7U50o7GOO pic.twitter.com/b0AwXeKf0h
— HollywoodLife (@HollywoodLife) November 2, 2015
According to ABC News, many of the movie’s cast members are still in touch today and have formed a strong bond that has survived over two decades. They sometimes can’t even believe how popular Hocus Pocus was… and still is.
“I don’t think any of us had any idea of the magnitude of how popular it would be ’til this day. It just goes to show that when you are young you watch things over and over again and it gets in your head, and just sticks,” said Shaw, now 39. She went on to talk about the strong friendships that she made while filming the movie.
“Omri’s such a cool dude. We were best buds. We were good friends. He didn’t make me feel nervous at all. Anything that was tension-building, we’d just laugh. I’m remembered mostly for ‘Hocus Pocus.’ When I grew up, they’d mostly say ‘Ohhh, Allison,’ but thankfully, they keep the ‘Yabbos’ comment to themselves,” she said with a laugh.
Hocus Pocus‘ Thora Birch, now 33, also says that she’s still recognized as Dani, even though she has done other films since (including the Academy Award winning film, American Beauty).
“The fact that ‘Hocus Pocus’ found a niche in that world where it cannot be extricated from the holiday itself to me is really amazing. I’m really surprised, but humbled and happy to be a part of something like that. I had the best time on that film — maybe more than any other movie I worked on,” she said.
Are you a fan of Hocus Pocus? Do you watch the film each October?
[Photo courtesy of Walt Disney Pictures]
