It’s been announced that a sequel is in the works to 1998 film Practical Magic, with lead actresses Nicole Kidman and Sandra Bullock said to be returning.
To much surprise and delight, Warner Bros made the announcement on its official TikTok account on Monday, 26 years after the cult classic was first released.
Based on the 1995 novel of the same name, Kidman, 56, and Bullock, 59, portrayed the witchy Owens sisters, Gillian and Sally, who are descended from a long line of magic-wielding women and cursed by a historical matriarch to never feel the pain of love.
When Sally accidentally poisons Gillian’s abusive ex-boyfriend, the two then end up relying on their powers to try and figure their way out of the criminal mess.
The movie’s impressive supporting cast also included Stockard Channing and Dianne Wiest as the girls’ aunts, Goran Višnjić, Evan Rachel Wood, Aidan Quinn, Margot Martindale and Mark Feuerstein.
Upon release, Practical Magic did not set the screen aflame, grossing less than its production budget of $75million (£58.9m) with $68.3m (£53.6m) worldwide.
Reviews were not kind either, with the film holding a paltry, rotten score of 24% on review aggregator website Rotten Tomatoes, drawn from 98 reviews.
Several compared the movie unfavourably to The Witches of Eastwick, with the Irish Times branding it ‘an inane and insipid effort’ and the Independent on Sunday describing it as ‘a sibling soap-opera with a dash of mumbo-jumbo’.
However, audience members seem to disagree with over 100,000 fans (so more than 10 times the number of critics) rushing to praise Practical Magic and bump it up to a 73% rating there.
Leading up to the announcement, Warner Bros shared a selection of clips from the film to whet the appetite of its audience, before finally sharing a post with a clip of Sally, Gillian and their aunts enjoying their famous midnight margaritas and confirming: ‘It’s official… Practical Magic 2 is coming!’
As per Variety, A Family Affair’s Kidman and Bullock are also reported to be in talks to reprise their roles for the sequel, alongside taking on producing roles.
Avika Goldman is set to write the screenplay with Denise Di Novi onboard as producer.
In 2019, the development of an HBO TV prequel series based on the aunts, called Rules of Magic, was announced, but it was finally shelved earlier this year.
The cult favourite’s fandom was out in numbers online as the news was announced, with the clip viewed 2.3m times, and sharing their excitement – as well as issuing warnings over how they hoped the Practical Magic sequel would be handled.
‘If Sandra and Nicole aren’t in this then we don’t want it,’ posted @ShayMarie underneath the announcement, while Alison Bills threatened: ‘If Sandra Bullock and Nicole Kidman are not in this movie I will riot!!’
‘Don’t play with my heart. I STRICTLY want Sandra and Nicole and the Aunts. IF THEY [sic] NOT THERE WE DON’T WANT IT,’ insisted @alimercee, while Dolly stated: ‘OG cast or don’t bother.’
‘Please don’t mess this up for us!!!’ pleaded Casey Kuvaas, while another fan raised another important aspect to the first film when they added: ‘We need Stevie Nicks on this soundtrack.’
‘I haven’t been this excited about a movie ever! PLEASE MAKE SURE SANDRA AND NICOLE ARE IN IT! I’m begging you. Make us proud!’ shared another.
Bullock is also known for starring in Speed (1994), Miss Congeniality (2000) and The Blind Side (2009), for which she won an Oscar, while fellow Academy Award holder Kidman has appeared in films including Moulin Rouge! (2001), Cold Mountain (2003) and Bombshell (2019).
The Witches of Eastwick was released in 1987 and starred Cher, Michelle Pfeiffer, Susan Sarandon and Jack Nicholson, as three single women in a village who have their wishes granted at a cost, when a mysterious and flamboyant man arrives in their lives.
Metro.co.uk has contacted reps for Sandra Bullock and Nicole Kidman for comment.
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