Bette Midler confirms talks for Hocus Pocus 3

Bette Midler has revealed that talks have taken place regarding 'Hocus Pocus 3'.

The 78-year-old star reprised her role as witch Winifred 'Winnie' Sanderson in the successful fantasy comedy sequel in 2022 and explained that gentle conversations have been held about a third flick.

Bette told SiriusXM's 'The Jess Cagle Show': "Now, they're kind of talking about a third, very gingerly and very gently.

"They are. They're talking about a third. The second one was a huge success."

Bette – who leads the cast alongside Sarah Jessica Parker and Kathy Najimy as the Sanderson sisters - says her alter ego is "probably the least like me of any character" that she has played during an acting career that has spanned more than half a century.

The 'Stepford Wives' star said: "She is the closest thing I will ever get to Shakespeare. She's from the era, from the time of Shakespeare.

"She really does put it on, and yet she has all the great things you love in a great villain. She's vicious, she's hilarious, she's ridiculous-looking, and she doesn't know any of that. It goes completely over her head."

Screenwriter Jen D'Angelo revealed last year that the picture is still in the story development phase following the conclusion of the Writers Guild of America (WGA) strike.

She told Entertainment Weekly: "We’re still in the story phase, we’re still working on it.

"We’ve been working on some ideas. It’s been fun to dive back into that world and we have so many directions in which to go and so many new characters to explore.

"We’ve only scratched the surface of Hannah Waddingham’s Mother Witch."