Twenty-eight years after the original became a cult classic, the Owens sisters materialized at a cemetery screening — and confirmed the coven is about to grow.
There could not have been a more fitting place to watch ‘Practical Magic’ than a cemetery — and Sandra Bullock said so herself. On Saturday, August 1, 2026, Bullock and Nicole Kidman made a surprise appearance at Cinespia’s outdoor screening of the 1998 film at the Hollywood Forever Cemetery in Los Angeles, sending an audience of blanket-and-wine picnickers into a full meltdown. Bullock joked that the graveyard was the perfect venue and playfully thanked the ‘spirits’ for joining them; the crowd roared, and the stars later raised a toast with the audience under the open sky.
They did not come alone, and they did not come only for nostalgia. Joining Bullock and Kidman were Joey King and Maisie Williams, the two actors stepping into the franchise for the sequel that has been in the works for years. King told the crowd that she and Williams would play Kylie and Antonia in the new film and said they were honored to join the ‘coven.’ Kidman, for her part, credited the fans directly, saying their years of devotion ‘played an important role in making the long-awaited sequel a reality.’
A flop that refused to die
The scene at Hollywood Forever is the culmination of one of Hollywood’s stranger second acts. ‘Practical Magic’ was not a hit when it opened in 1998; reviews were unkind and the box office was modest. But the story of the Owens sisters — witches raised under a family curse that dooms any man they love — found its afterlife on cable, then on DVD, then on streaming, until ‘midnight margaritas’ and autumn rewatches became a seasonal ritual for a generation. The film’s cult status is now large enough that a surprise cast appearance can trend for days.
‘Practical Magic 2’ is real, and dated
The sequel is no longer a rumor. ‘Practical Magic 2’ is directed by Susanne Bier and set for release by Warner Bros. on September 11, 2026. It draws on Alice Hoffman’s 2021 novel ‘The Book of Magic,’ the fourth book in her Owens family series, with a screenplay credited to Akiva Goldsman, Georgia Pritchett and Kelly Marcel.
The core coven returns intact: Bullock as Sally Owens and Kidman as Gillian, alongside Dianne Wiest and Stockard Channing reprising the beloved aunts, Jet and Frances. The new generation is where King and Williams come in — as Kylie and Antonia, the next Owens women to inherit the family’s gifts and troubles — with Lee Pace, Xolo Maridueña and Solly McLeod (playing a warlock named Thomas Lockland) rounding out the additions.
The next chapter of the curse
Plot details are being held close, but the shape is known: the story unfolds roughly twenty-five years after the original, reuniting the Owens women when Sally’s daughter uncovers hidden family secrets and dark powers she was never warned about. The production leaned into the material’s transatlantic gothic streak, filming through the summer of 2025 at Warner Bros. Studios Leavesden outside London, with additional location work in Devon and around the capital; Simon Duggan served as cinematographer.
Why now
The timing is not an accident. Legacy sequels to films with devoted, mostly female fan bases have become reliable cultural events, and few properties inspire the specific, cozy loyalty of ‘Practical Magic.’ Just as important is the real-life friendship between its two leads: Bullock and Kidman have spoken warmly about each other for decades, and the sight of them arriving together at a cemetery screening to bless the next chapter played less like a marketing stunt than a reunion the fans had willed into being. Kidman was explicit that the audience made it happen — a rare case of a studio sequel that genuinely owes its existence to the people who kept the original alive. The Owens women return to theaters on September 11.
Sources
• The Hollywood Reporter — surprise screening appearance: hollywoodreporter.com/movies/movie-news/sandra-bullock-nicole-kidman-practical-magic-appearance-1236661508
• Variety — Cinespia screening: variety.com/2026/film/news/nicole-kidman-sandra-bullock-practical-magic-cinespia-screening-1236825330
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