Hocus Pocus (1993 film) Hocus Pocus (1993 film) Hocus Pocus is a 1993 American comedy horror fantasy film directed by Kenny Ortega, starring Bette Midler, Kathy Najimy, and Sarah Jessica Parker; written by Neil Cuthbert and Mick Garris, and based on a story by Garris and David Kirschner. It follows a villainous trio of witches, who are inadvertently resurrected by a teenage boy in Salem, Massachusetts. Although it was not a critical or commercial success when it was first released, "Hocus Pocus" has become a cult film, largely from annual airings on the Disney Channel and Freeform (formerly ABC Family). On October 31, 1693
Bette Midler Choice Award for her performance in the show and received a Golden Globe Award nomination the following year. Also in 2000, Midler made an uncredited cameo appearance in Nancy Meyers' fantasy rom–com "What Women Want", starring Mel Gibson and Helen Hunt. In the film, she portrayed a therapist who realizes that central character Nick, played by Gibson, is able to understand women's thoughts. Released to generally mixed reviews, it became the then-most successful film ever directed by a woman, taking in $183 million in the United States, and grossing upward of $370 million worldwide. The same year Midler starred in