Just about 30 years after the release of the original classic, Hocus Pocus 2 is proving to be a huge success for Disney+, becoming the #1 film premiere on the streaming service earlier this month. And the good news gets even better, with Deadline reporting this week that Hocus Pocus 2 also set another huge record for minutes viewed on the overall Nielsen charts.
Deadline notes, “Hocus Pocus 2 set a record for streaming minutes by a movie on Nielsen’s weekly chart, drawing more than 2.7 billion minutes of viewing from September 26 to October 2. The Disney sequel premiered on September 30, meaning only its first weekend counted toward the total.” Previous record holder was Encanto, which debuted with 2.2 billion minutes.
Deadline adds for context, “Nielsen’s weekly rankings measure only streaming via a TV screen (meaning mobile viewing is not counted) for titles on Disney+, Hulu, Apple TV+, Prime Video, HBO Max and Netflix, with numbers reported after nearly a month’s delay.”
Could Hocus Pocus 3 be headed our way soon? Never say never…
Meagan Navarro wrote in her review for Bloody Disgusting, “Hocus Pocus 2 captures the memories of the original yet doesn’t retread the exact same ground. The Sanderson sisters’ return feels like a warm hug among old friends. They bring with them a feel-good message and enough Halloween treats to bewitch a younger generation.
“This sequel is as sweet and decadent as a gourmet caramel apple at a Halloween festival.”
The new film is being billed as “the spooky sequel to the 1993 Halloween classic,” with Bette Midler, Sarah Jessica Parker and Kathy Najimy all back as the Sanderson Sisters.
“It’s been 29 years since someone lit the Black Flame Candle and resurrected the 17th-century sisters who were executed for practicing witchcraft, and they are looking for revenge. Now it is up to three high-school students to figure out how to stop the ravenous witches from wreaking a new kind of havoc on Salem before midnight on All Hallow’s Eve.”
Anne Fletcher (The Guilt Trip) directed Hocus Pocus 2 for Disney+.
The Kenny Ortega-directed 1993 movie starred Omri Katz as a curious youngster who moves to Salem, Massachusetts, where he struggles to fit in before awakening a trio of diabolical witches (Bette Midler, Sarah Jessica Parker, and Kathy Najimy) that were executed in the 17th century. The film also starred Thora Birch, who did not return for the sequel, unfortunately.
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