After a summer for the record books, movie theater operators are hoping to keep the vibes high with some midnight margaritas.
Those celebratory cocktails are part of the fun in “Practical Magic 2,” a fantasy sequel about witchy sisters played by Nicole Kidman and Sandra Bullock. Nostalgia should propel the follow-up film to $30 million to $40 million from 4,000 North American theaters in its debut, enough to claim No. 1 and topple the six-weekend reign of “Spider-Man: Brand New Day.”
“Practical Magic 2” is aiming for another $18 million to $25 million at the international box office from 77 territories, which would put initial global sales anywhere from $48 million to $65 million. Warner Bros. produced the movie for $75 million.
The first “Practical Magic” was a box office flop but eventually became a cult favorite. In the original movie, based on the novel by Alice Hoffman, sisters Sally and Gillian Owens, who descend from a long line of witches, find themselves fighting off a curse that kills the men they fall in love with. Susanne Bier directed the sequel, which picks up 25 years later as Sally and Gillian’s daughters uncover their hidden family secrets and seek to break the curse that has long haunted their lineage. Dianne Wiest and Stockard Channing reprised their roles from the prior film, while Joey King and Maisie Williams joined the cast. Reviews for “Practical Magic 2” have not been kind (Variety’s critic Todd Gilchrist called the movie “as cumbersome and overlong as the 28-year wait” between the two chapters) — which may not bode well for box office longevity beyond its opening weekend.
