Practical Magic 2: Everything We Know About the Witchy Sequel…Which Is Really Happening This Time

Hang onto your husbands, girls! Practical Magic 2, a Practical Magic sequel, is in the works.

On June 10, Variety reported that the Owens sisters are coming back to a theater near you (or possibly a streaming service, considering the original 1998 classic was recently added to Max). Nineties pop culture was full of badass witches, but the chemistry between Sandra Bullock and Nicole Kidman was magic unto itself, which leads me to the best news: The original stars are reportedly in talks to reprise their roles.

Of course, some Practical Magic fans may hesitate to celebrate with midnight margaritas, considering we’ve been burned before. Back in 2019, HBO Max announced it was developing a prequel series centered on the sisters’ beloved aunts, Franny and Jet, who were played by Dianne Wiest and Stockard Channing in the original film.

However, that series, Rules of Magic, was officially pronounced dead this year. “There is something else that’s going to happen that is still a secret,” Practical Magic producer Denise Di Novi told UPI in February. “But I think the fans are going to be thrilled.”

Well, the secret’s out. Here’s everything we know about the Practical Magic sequel.

Nicole Kidman, Goran Visnjnic, and Sandra Bullock in 1998’s Practical Magic

©Warner Bros/Courtesy Everett Collection

What will the sequel be about?The original film followed reluctant witches Sally (Bullock) and Gillian Owens (Kidman), who embrace magic to save themselves from the evil spirit of Gillian’s abusive boyfriend who was murdered by Sally. There’s also a generational curse that causes the death of any of the Owens family’s male love interests, which they appear to break with the power of sisterhood.

The film was based on Alice Hoffman’s 1995 novel of the same name, and Rules of Magic was going to base itself on a prequel novel released in 2017. Hoffman then wrote two more books in the Practical Magic series: Magic Lessons (2020), which focuses on the origins of the Owens family curse, and The Book of Magic (2022).

Now we know the sequel will be based on the last book, The Book of Magic. In an interview with Entertainment Weekly, Di Novi revealed the source material and said the film will stick closely to the plot of that novel.

“I think [fans are] going to be very pleased,” she said. “We’re going to be very faithful. We’re cognizant to how important those characters and that movie are to so many people. We’re not going to reinvent the wheel. We’re going to draw from Alice Hoffman’s books, as the first movie did, and we’re going to be true to the chronology of how many years later it is.”

The book brings all the Owens women (and a “long-lost brother”) together to save Jet from the brink of death and put a stop to the Owens family curse once and for all.

Here is the full synopsis:

“For over 300 years, a curse has kept the Owens family from love—but all of that is about to change. The novel begins in a library, the best place for a story to be conjured, when beloved aunt Jet Owens hears the deathwatch beetle and knows she has only seven days to live. Jet is not the only one in danger—the curse is already at work.

A frantic attempt to save a young man’s life spurs three generations of the Owens women, and one long-lost brother, to use their unusual gifts to break the curse as they travel from Paris to London to the English countryside, where their ancestor Maria Owens first practiced the Unnamed Art. The younger generation discovers secrets that have been hidden from them in matters of both magic and love by Sally, their fiercely protective mother. As Kylie Owens uncovers the truth about who she is and what her own dark powers are, her aunt Franny comes to understand that she is ready to sacrifice everything for her family, and Sally Owens realizes that she is willing to give up everything for love.”

Who is involved?Variety reports that Akiva Goldsman will write the movie’s screenplay, while Bullock and Kidman are “expected” to produce the project with Di Novi.

©Warner Bros/Courtesy Everett Collection

Who is in the cast of Practical Magic 2?All we know at the moment is that Kidman and Bullock are likely to return. No word yet on Channing and Wiest, but it feels illegal to move forward without them.

Furthermore, if the story is going to be centered on Sally’s daughters, I’m begging producers to re-cast their original actors Evan Rachel Wood and Alexandra Artrip.

When will it come out?Di Novi told Entertainment Weekly that the film will come out in 2025, but she is “not exactly sure when.”

“We’re just beginning the script, and Akiva Goldsman, who worked on the original and 10 million things since then, is writing the script,” she added.

This post will be updated.