A first look photo has been released that shows us actor Doug Jones back in the role of Billy Butcherson in the long-awaited sequel Hocus Pocus 2. In the film Butcherson is “the undead loverboy who returns from the grave to battle the resurrected Sanderson Sisters, for the first time in 29 years.” Director Anne Fletcher talked to EW about seeing Jones step back into the role, saying:
"It does something to your soul, it's so surreal, it's so mind-blowing. He's in a moment of betrayal [in the scene], so you're looking at this beloved character in such a way who's been hurt, and it blows your socks off. I'll never forget that."
Jones said of returning to the character, and Billy’s new journey:
"I was really happy that Billy comes out of the grave talking. It is seamless between the first movie and the second, that's the first thing I felt. It keeps the pureness and nostalgia alive and well for those who grew up with the first movie, and for any new fans we're gathering now will be excited about modernization for the current time we're in," he says, later adding: "Billy came back to me immediately, it was frightening how he's been alive while I've been playing other characters all these years, but, Billy's like, 'I wanted my chance again.'"
That chance begins in Fletcher's sequel as Billy's eternal slumber is interrupted after a brand new group of teens (Belissa Escobedo, Whitney Peak, and Lilia Buckingham) light the Black Flame Candle, ushering in a new reign of terror on contemporary Salem at the hands of the witchy trio (Bette Midler, Kathy Najimy, and Sarah Jessica Parker). Jones confirms that Billy is still a friendly zombie, and that his backstory in the sequel further fleshes out the soul hiding beneath his decayed flesh.
"His hatred for the witches puts him on [the teens'] side," Jones says, promising that fans will get a clearer glimpse into his past relationship with Winifred "back in the day," before she poisoned him on May 1, 1693 for cheating on her with Sarah.
Later, Billy is still looking for love, albeit in a platonic sense. He finds it, Fletcher says, in what those who've seen the film have dubbed a "bromance" between Billy and Gilbert (Sam Richardson), the owner of the Salem Magic Shoppe — an occult tourist attraction operating out of the old Sanderson Sisters cottage.
"It's such a sweet, special little relationship and side story," Fletcher observes. Jones likens it to their "own little buddy film going off on the side as the movie plays out," which he hopes fans will find to be as "charming and lovely" as he does.
Jones went on to talk about how amazing it was to get back into the costume and makeup, which was exactly the same:
"He was pretty decrepit to start with, and I come out of the grave looking exactly like two minutes have passed. It was the exact same wig, they had it on a dummy on display for 29 years, they put it back on my head in the same style, it didn't even need a touch-up. The costume was rebuilt to be the same as the first one, so I looked exactly the same. It was so nostalgic for me to look in the mirror and go, 'You're 30-nothing years old again.’"
Hocus Pocus 2 premieres on September 30th on Disney+.
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