What ‘Hocus Pocus’ Star Sarah Jessica Parker Liked to Dress Up as for Halloween

Sarah Jessica Parker remains part of one of the most celebrated Halloween cult classics— Hocus Pocus. Though the film initially premiered to critical condemnation, audiences have since gone on to grasp the loveability in the laughable, the radiance in the ridiculousness.

Parker played Sarah Sanderson in the 1993 fantasy/comedy opposite Bette Midler and Kathy Najimy. In the campy narrative, she flew on a broomstick, sung to innocent youths, beckoning them with “Come, Little Children,” and more. Yet, how does Parker feel about Halloween? Is she a fan of the holiday, and what was her go-to costume growing up? During an appearance on The Late Show with Stephen Colbert, Parker discussed Halloween, explaining the costume her mother sewed that she loved. 

Sarah Jessica Parker discusses dressing up for Halloween with Stephen Colbert 

Parker and Colbert jokingly battled over their fierce mothers, as Parker has 7 siblings while Colbert is one of 11. Though noting “it’s not a contest,” the two went on to bicker over who “won —” whose mom had it the hardest and rose to the occasion. They noted that their parents sewed their costumes from scratch before Parker went on to explain why she enjoyed dressing up as a lion. Parker told Colbert: 

I liked being a lion. She made a beautiful, really detailed lion costume with a mane, and it was yellow and brown, and it was beautiful. 

Sarah Jessica Parker / ‘The Late Show with Stephen Colbert’

Parker explained that growing up in Cincinnati, Ohio, she had to put boots on over her shoes, which sort of ruined the whole effect, but she was in it for the candy; she wasn’t the most passionate about dressing up. 

Sarah Jessica Parker was all about the candy; the costume wasn’t a big deal to her

Parker told Colbert, “I just did it for the candy,” revealing that she “didn’t care about dressing up.” While most young kids remain fixated on their costumes, Parker was putting on a whole getup and taking out the big pillowcase to get the candy she couldn’t otherwise get. 

Parker told Colbert that, growing up, her mom didn’t keep candy in the house; explaining that her mother was quite “modern” at the time concerning sweets. Thus, Parker would go out, fill up a big pillowcase, come home to dump it, and head back out for more trick or treating. 

Though Sarah Jessica Parker remains intimately tied to one of the most famous Halloween movies — and associated witch looks — of all time, she dressed up for the sweets, not for the photos.