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The long-awaited Hocus Pocus 2 is arriving on Disney+ this year. While the official cast is filled with mostly new faces, Bette Midler, Kathy Najimy, and Sarah Jessica Parker are all returning as the wicked Sanderson sisters. Doug Jones is also reprising his role as Billy Butcherson, the zombie who Winifred (Midler) brings back to life.

Unfortunately, Entertainment Weekly has shared that Thora Birch, who plays Dani in the original, will not be returning for the sequel. However, there are still other iconic characters from the first Hocus Pocus who could return in some fashion. Here are 3 possible characters who may come back. 

Thora Birch from Hocus Pocus attends the premiere party for The Walking Dead.
Thora Birch | Tommaso Boddi/Getty Images for AMC

Max Dennison: what happened to the teen who lit the black flame candle

In the first Hocus Pocus, Max (Omri Katz) is the new kid in town who accidentally wakes up the three witches. He is the older brother of Dani and has a huge crush on Allison (Vinessa Shaw). The three characters team up to try and save the children of Salem from the evil, but also hilarious, witches. 

In the sequel, three teenage girls played by Lilia Buckingham, Whitney Peak, and Belissa Escobedo are now the new team who have to stop the witches once they are resurrected. Why not seek help from the man who lit the black flame candle all those years ago.

In Oct. 2021, Katz told TMZ that he had not “been approached about being involved in Hocus Pocus 2.” However, the actor did say that he is open to returning in some fashion. 

Allison: are she and Max still together?

Allison is another possible character who could return. Similar to Katz, Shaw said in an interview with Entertainment Tonight that she hasn’t “heard anything” either in terms of returning to this franchise. However, she is very open to bringing this character back. 

“I haven’t heard anything,” Shaw said. “I know, it’s so disappointing [to hear]. I would love to do the sequel. It would be so much fun. I think there’s just a different storyline with younger people, but why can’t we all come back in some way?”

While she hasn’t been confirmed to return in any way yet, she does have some idea of what her character may have been up to since 1993. 

“I feel like she and Max are still together, but I think Allison’s from Salem and he always wants to be in California,” Shaw explained. “I think they did some sort of compromise and maybe she’s in Salem when the witches come back, you know, visiting her mom or something.”

‘Ice’ and Jay: these bullies from ‘Hocus Pocus’ are hilarious

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‘Hocus Pocus’: Where Is the Cast Now? Plus, How Much Are They Worth?

Ernie “Ice” (Larry Bagby) and Jay (Tobias Jelenik) are the two goofy bullies that start the film by stealing Max’s shoes. Throughout Hocus Pocus, they pop up to just annoy Max before getting kidnapped by the three witches. Last we saw them, they were still in the cages made by the witches. Hopefully, somebody got them out. 

It would be interesting to catch up with these characters and see what they’re up to 30 years later. Are they still bullies? Do they still have Max’s shoes? They aren’t in the first movie much but they definitely are memorable. 

While it’s unclear if they will return for the sequel, Bagby and Jelenik returned in 2018 to recreate their first scene from Hocus Pocus for Halloween. The video was shared by E News and the pair don’t miss a beat. They may not be the most important character, but seeing them again would be tubular. 

Hocus Pocus 2 arrives on Disney+ in Oct. 2022. 

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