HOCUS POCUS 2

*CUT TO THE CHASE*

NOTE: This spoiler was submitted by Jeremy

Salem, 1653 – A young 16-year-old Winifred Sanderson (Taylor Paige Henderson) stomps through her town, terrifying other citizens. She makes it to the house she shares with her sisters, Sarah (Juju Journey Brener) and Mary (Nina Kitchen). Winnie complains to her sisters that she was told she is getting old and is being arranged to marry a local man named John Pritchett (Thomas Fitzgerald). Sarah and Mary gift Winnie with a spider before being visited by an angry crowd led by Reverend Traske (Tony Hale). Winnie once again refuses John (which he is thankful for) and claims that she is in love with Billy Butcherson (Austin J. Ryan). Traske then banishes the Sandersons from Salem, where they will be forced into other families to be “turned right”. The girls’ spider goes loose and scares the townspeople, giving Winnie a chance to get her sisters.

The Sandersons flee into the woods, where they are found by Mother Witch (Hannah Waddingham), singing a song that beckons children to her. Although Mother Witch plans to devour the sisters, she is surprised to find that Winnie possesses some kind of power to her. Instead of eating them, Mother Witch gives Winnie her spell book, allowing her to practice her magic, but Mother Witch warns Winnie against using the spell known as Magicae Maxima, which would give her ultimate power. Mother Witch also tells the sisters that absorbing the essence of children keeps them looking young and beautiful. The Sandersons then return to town and use their newfound spells to set Traske’s house on fire.

In present-day Salem, teenager Becca (Whitney Peak) arrives at school on her 16th birthday to join her friend Izzy (Belissa Escobedo) and their estranged friend Cassie (Lilia Buckingham). Cassie ends up ditching the two to hang out with her jock boyfriend Mike (Froy Gutierrez), and Izzy talks to Becca about how Cassie has barely hung out with them lately. The girls plan to do their Halloween tradition for a sleepover with scary movies while also practicing a witchy ritual. During class, Mike lets it slip that Cassie is throwing a Halloween party at her house. Becca says a “spell” to freak Mike out because he knows that Becca is a fan of witchcraft. This sends them to the principal’s office, where Becca has a small argument with Cassie since she mocks her birthday ritual.

After school, Becca and Izzy walk past a billboard with Cassie’s family, as her father Jefry Traske (also Tony Hale) is running for mayoral re-election (and yes, they are descended from Reverend Traske). The girls go to a magic shop that used to be the Sandersons’ cottage. The owner, Gilbert (Sam Richardson), tells kids who enter the shop the legend of the Sandersons and how they were hanged for kidnapping and killing Emily Binx before they were resurrected back in 1993 when a virgin lit the Black Flame Candle. After the kids leave, Gilbert talks to Becca and Izzy, and he gives her a candle for her ritual, as well as Angelica leaves to lift curses.

Becca and Izzy go into the woods for the ritual as the moon rises, with Becca taking out a picture of them with Cassie, so it’s like she’s there with them. They light the candle and say an incantation, causing the candle to begin sparking. Becca throws water on it, but the candle lights back up with the Black Flame. They hear the “Come Little Children” song, and the ground begins to shake and crack open. Emerging from Hell are the newly resurrected Sanderson sisters (Bette Midler, Sarah Jessica Parker, and Kathy Najimy). They begin to sing “The Witches are Back,” gleefully celebrating their return to Salem. Becca and Izzy try to run, but the sisters spot them and plan to kill them after remembering they were outwitted by teenagers their last time around. The girls lie and pretend that they are witches who are 40 but look like teenagers and pretend that there are brews and potions all around for them to consume. The Sandersons believe them and follow the girls.

The girls lead the sisters to a Walgreens, where they begin to sample the creams and lotions, believing them to work. They are found by a younger group dressed exactly like them, and they ask for a selfie. When the Sandersons realize they have been tricked by Becca and Izzy, they chase the girls until they pour salt around themselves to fend off the sisters’ magic. The girls flee while the sisters use their brooms (or two Roombas for Mary) and give chase.

Becca and Izzy run back to Gilbert, who admits he knew about the candle and about the spell book (or “Book”), which is now awake since the Sandersons are back. He opens Book, and it emits a beacon of light to attract the sisters. They arrive and imprison Becca and Izzy in their basement dungeon while also making the stairs disappear, so they don’t try to climb out. Gilbert tells the Sandersons that he was there as a child the first night that they were resurrected, and he witnessed their demise in the graveyard. When the Sandersons learn of Mayor Traske and his relation to the Reverend, Winnie decides she wants to do the Magicae Maxima spell, but Book refuses to let her. She opens it anyway and lists off the ingredients, one of which includes Traske’s blood. She traps Gilbert into helping gather the ingredients and bring them to the Forbidden Wood before their hourglass fills up, or he will die.

The girls try to contact Cassie and warn her that the Sandersons want her dad, but Becca’s phone cannot connect to her properly. Izzy remembers the Angelica leaves and uses them to make the stairs reappear, allowing them to escape. They try to get their hands on Book, but the Sandersons already put a spell on it to prevent the girls from touching it. They resolve that they need to head to Cassie’s house and warn her themselves.

Gilbert goes to the grave of Billy (Doug Jones) since one of the ingredients is the head of a former lover, but although Billy was widely reported to be Winnie’s lover, he tells Gilbert that they had only kissed once. Gilbert promises to tell the truth about Billy when everything is done.

The Sandersons end up at the Halloween carnival, where they find Traske but also become amused by the activities. Becca contacts him and tells him about Cassie’s party, prompting him to head home and punish her. The Sandersons are invited onstage for a Sanderson sisters costume contest, but a group of drag queens wins the contest. Winnie takes the mic and leads her sisters to bewitch the audience by singing “One Way or Another”, but it just leads to everyone doing a dance around the streets.

Gilbert hangs out with Billy at the carnival, where Billy genuinely has a good time. However, when they return to the cottage, Gilbert attempts to reverse the sand in the hourglass but cannot. This clues Billy in that he has made a pact with the Sandersons, and he starts walking away. Gilbert apologizes but also takes Billy’s head.

Becca and Izzy make it to Cassie’s house, but the Sandersons find them there, thanks to Mike. They bring them outside, where they air out their grievances, and Mike realizes he has been a jerk to Cassie’s friends. Traske returns home and encounters the Sandersons, but they also learn that Cassie is also a descendant of the Reverend. The Sandersons attempt to use magic against the girls, but Becca emits a small amount of power to defend herself. The girls trap the sisters in a salt circle and make a run for it, but Mary uses the Roombas to clean up the salt and allow them to go after the girls.

The Sandersons grab Cassie and find Gilbert in the Forbidden Wood with the rest of the ingredients. Becca and Izzy find them and see Becca’s hands glowing, leading to them realizing Becca also has witch powers. The Sandersons begin their spell, but Becca and Izzy try to warn Winnie that doing the Magicae Maxima will take away what she values most, which Book had shown them and tried to warn Winnie about. They ignore her, and the spell is complete. However, it turns out what Winnie values most are her sisters, as Sarah and Mary begin to vanish. Winnie becomes remorseful and asks the sisters to undo the spell, but they cannot. They agree to a reunion spell, so Becca, Izzy, and Cassie perform the spell. It doesn’t bring Sarah and Mary back and instead begins to send Winnie to them, but she is okay with it. Winnie laughs and cries out, “Sistaaaaaahs!” before she also vanishes. Gilbert puts Billy’s head back on his body, and he begins to cross over, with Gilbert keeping his promise to tell the truth about Billy’s story.

The girls decide to give Book a new home, and Cassie rejoins her friends as they decide to continue practicing witchcraft. They then walk together, swaying side-to-side just like the Sandersons. Up above, a bird appearing like Mother Witch flies overhead.

After the credits, Gilbert’s cat Cobweb walks by a box containing yet another Black Flame Candle, meaning the Sandersons may return again.

 

Nearly 30 years after their last defeat, the Sanderson sisters - Winifred, Sarah, and Mary - are brought back to life when teenager Becca and her friend Izzy light the Black Flame Candle in the Forbidden Wood during a full moon on Becca's 16th birthday. The sisters plan to perform a spell, the Magicae Maxima, which would give them ultimate power. They enlist magic shop owner Gilbert (who was a child when he first witnessed the sisters' first resurrection) to gather ingredients, which includes the head of Winnie's alleged lover Billy Butcherson (though he tells Gilbert they only kissed once) and the blood of Mayor Traske, descendent of the Reverend that banished the sisters from Salem the first time.

Becca and Izzy team up with their estranged friend Cassie, who is the mayor's daughter, to stop the Sandersons from completing their spell. It doesn't work, and the Sandersons perform the Magicae Maxima, but at the cost of Winnie losing what she values most, which are her sisters. After Sarah and Mary vanish, Winnie asks the girls to perform a reunion spell since it turns out Becca has actual witch powers. The spell makes Winnie disappear so she can be with her sisters, but she is okay with it and happily crosses over. Billy also crosses over, and Gilbert agrees to properly tell his story.

The three girls resume their friendship and continue practicing witchcraft, while it turns out the magic shop has another Black Flame Candle that may summon the Sandersons once more.