Practical Magic 2’s Rotten Tomatoes score is in — and the spell fizzles

Right then, autumn has barely arrived and we’ve already got Practical Magic 2 swooping in to set the mood. After nearly three decades, Hollywood’s wheeled out a legacy sequel for the original 1998 cult favourite. We’re back with Sandra Bullock and Nicole Kidman as the witchy Owens sisters, joined by returning faces Stockard Channing and Dianne Wiest, both slotting back into the family spellbook. There’s fresh blood in the mix, too—Joey King, Maisie Williams, Lee Pace and Xolo Maridueña all show up this time around. Susanne Bier, of Bird Box fame, takes the director’s chair, which should have raised a few eyebrows even before the early reviews landed.

Practical Magic 2 debuted on Rotten Tomatoes with a 32% critics’ score from 28 reviews.

Now for the honest bit: If you were hoping the 28-year wait paid off, brace yourself. The critics have not been kind. As of this week, the film’s stumbled out of the gates with a 32% critic score on Rotten Tomatoes—that’s out of 28 reviews, and let’s just say they’re not exactly using a light touch. Todd Gilchrist from Variety described the film as a reheated batch of everything that made the first one nostalgic for some, but frustrating for nearly everyone else. Over at SlashFilm, Witney Seibold summed up the mood with a blunt "staggeringly unfunny, and really sloppily assembled" in a 4 out of 10 review.

Script Spells Gone Wrong

The most common target seems to be the screenplay. Clarisse Loughrey from The Independent gave the film 2 out of 5, admiring the film’s intentions but arguing nobody’s really settled on a compelling reason to revisit these characters after so long. Kristen Lopez at The Film Maven was even harsher, slapping it with a D grade and arguing the script is just cobbled together bits and bobs—a last-ditch attempt to make the thirty-year gap mean something.

What Actually Works?

It’s not all bad news if you’re a Bullock or Kidman devotee. Some critics reckon the chemistry between the two leads is still strong enough to keep the whole thing from falling apart. Amy Kim at Next of Best Picture handed out a decent 6/10, arguing that the film earns its place for the sheer joy of watching Bullock and Kidman riff off each other. Angie Han in The Hollywood Reporter highlighted the "palpable affection" between the two stars, suggesting their dynamic is still as sturdy as ever, even if the rest has got a bit wobbly. Over at IndieWire, Alison Foreman was considerably more upbeat, giving it a B+ and praising director Susanne Bier for wisely focusing on "the pure joy of seeing these women drinking margaritas again." Apparently, the film finds a way to reframe ageing as something powerful, rather than tragic—a rare thing for a mainstream sequel, never mind one about magic sisters.

The Cult Factor and Box Office Spell

Worth remembering: the original Practical Magic wasn’t exactly a hit with critics either. Its own Rotten Tomatoes score sits at a miserly 30%. But across the decades it’s grown into a beloved staple for Halloween—so there’s a decent chance the new one might pull the same trick, bomb with critics but clean up as a comfort watch every autumn. As far as commercial prospects go, early projections have Practical Magic 2 looking at an opening between $40 and $56 million—more than enough to put it on top of the US box office for the weekend.

• Sandra Bullock (Sally Owens)
• Nicole Kidman (Gillian Owens)
• Stockard Channing (Aunt Frances)
• Dianne Wiest (Aunt Jet)
• Joey King
• Maisie Williams
• Lee Pace
• Xolo Maridueña