Hocus Pocus 2 ending explained: Will the Sanderson sisters return again?

Hocus Pocus 2 sees three young girls trying to right the wrong and save the people after they accidentally resurrect the Sanderson sisters in the modern day Salem.

Warning: This article contains heavy spoilers

Plot Summary

Hocus Pocus 2 starts with the origins of the Sanderson sisters, back when they were teenagers in 1653 Salem.

Winifred defies the church by refusing to marry John Pritchett. Consequently, the Reverse end banishes her from Salem while taking away Sarah and Mary.

However, Winifred refuses to let that happen and amidst the chaos, runs off to the forbidden forest, along with her sisters. 

There, they stumble upon the Mother Witch who tells them about witches and then gifts Winifred a magic book for her sixteenth birthday.

Cut to present-day Salem, Salem is observing Halloween celebrations. Becca and Izzy prepare for Halloween and Becca’s sixteenth birthday. 

Their estranged friend Cassie is not coming, nor are they going to her party due to the rift that has occurred in their dynamic. Becca and Izzy then head on to Gilbert’s magic shop, which was formerly the Sanderson sisters’ cottage. 

Gilbert gifts the Black Flame Candle and the two girls head on to their spot in the forest. When Becca, a virgin, lights up the candle, the Black Flame appears and the Sanderson witches are brought back to the mortal realm 29 years after their first resurrection. 

Becca and Izzy try to evade the witches but the Sanderson sisters are clever, despite their general aloofness and ineptitude. The two teenagers end up getting locked inside the Sanderson cottage basement. 

Gilbert falls victim to Sandersons’ mischief and is bound by a magical contract. Gilbert has to run against the time to gather up the ingredients required for Winifred to cast the Magicae Maxima — a spell Mother Witch warned her to never cast. 

Winifred relents still, as she wants to exact revenge on Mayor Traske, who’s a descendant of the Reverend and become all-powerful as well.

Becca and Izzy find out that Becca is actually a witch and has powers of her own. They meet up with Cassie and together, they try to thwart the witch sisters’ plans, to no avail.

The ending of Hocus Pocus 2 sees Winifred cast the big spell, without reading the warning. The caveat to the spell’s gifts is that the caster will lose that which they love most. For Winifred, it’s her sisters Mary and Sarah.

Winifred regrets her act when Mary and Sarah disappear and begs the book to undo the spell. Becca, Izzy, and Cassie then cast another spell that reunites Winifred with her sisters, sending her back to them as well. 

Hocus Pocus 2 ending explained in detail:

What is the Magicae Maxima spell and what does it do?

Magicae Maxima is a mighty spell that grants the caster unimaginable power but it’s also a spell that carries with it some sinister and grave consequences as well. 

It is near the ending of Hocus Pocus 2 where it’s revealed that Magicae Maxima is a powerful spell that can lend its caster mighty power but also take in return that which the caster loves most. 

This is why Mother Witch warns Winnie to never cast the spell back when she gifted her the book in 1653. 

Winnie wants to make no mistakes when they’re resurrected for the second time. She begins working on the solution to their sustained invincibility and survival in the mortal world, even during the daytime. 

To achieve this, Winnie decides to not heed Mother Witch’s warning and cast Magicae Maxima — a spell even Mr Book is against the casting. 

Without knowing of the toll it exacts, Winnie casts the spell, becoming all-powerful and invincible, surviving even when the Black Flame Candle is extinguished. However, the spell has already taken its toll. 

Winnie stands helpless, seeing her sisters vanish as a result of casting the spell. Regretful, she begs the book to undo her folly. 

Do the Sanderson sisters reunite in the end?

After her regretful mistake that she makes in haste and desperation, Winnie is all-powerful but has no one to enjoy the fruits of the spell with. 

Mary and Sarah vanish, leaving Winnie to mope and regret her mistake. She begs Mr Book to do something that undoes her mistake. 

Mr Book does have a spell to right the wrongs, and thanks to Becca’s witch powers and the combined might of the coven that she forms with Cassie and Izzy, they cast another spell that reunites Winnie with her sisters.

However, when Mary and Sarah don’t reappear, Winnie asks why that is, to which Becca replies that the spell doesn’t bring the loved ones back. Instead, the magical undoing spell sends the caster back to their loved ones. 

Sure enough, Winnie starts to dissipate into sparkles like her sisters did moments ago. The ending of Hocus Pocus 2 sees Winnie happily accepting her fate, reuniting with her sisters in the unknown beyond. 

Will the Sanderson sisters come back?

In the post-credits scene of Hocus Pocus 2, the camera pans to a box sitting on one of the shelves at Gilbert’s magic shop. 

The box is marked as “BF #2 Candle”, obviously meaning that another one of the Black Flame Candles remains. This also means that the story of the Sanderson sisters might not be over just yet. 

The box is marked as “BF #2 Candle”, obviously meaning that another one of the Black Flame Candles remains. This also means that the story of the Sanderson sisters might not be over just yet. 

The post-credits scene of Hocus Pocus 2 is an obvious set-up for a sequel, also leaving a possibility for the Sanderson sisters to return again. 

It would be a bit of a repetitive affair what with all their resurrections and disappearances and resurrections again. 

However, there could be another storyline involving not the Sanderson sisters but another coven of witches. 

There might just be a story involving the resurrection of the Mother Witch, allowing Hannah Waddingham to make a return and bewitch the new Hocus Pocus audiences. 

Also Read: Aníkúlápó ending explained: Does Saro die in the end?

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