Hocus Pocus
Hocus Pocushas some big epithet among its master cast , and among those could have been Leonardo DiCaprio , but he terminate up turning down a role in it . Although Disney is best known for its invigorate movies and for stories aim at a untried audience , it also has its collection of “ skittish ” subject , though always following the studio ’s argumentation of family - friendly content . Among Disney ’s most popular and darling Halloween motion picture isHocus Pocus , let go in 1993 and directed by Kenny Ortega .
Set in Salem , Massachusetts , Hocus Pocustells the account of the Sanderson Sisters – Winifred ( Bette Midler ) , Sarah ( Sarah Jessica Parker ) , and Mary ( Kathy Najimy ) – , who after draining the sprightliness force out of a small female child and cursing her brother to live forever as a pitch-dark cat , are hanged , but not before Winifred cast a execration that will upraise her and her sisters during a full moon on Halloween if a Virgo light the Black Candle at their bungalow . Three one C later , Max Dennison ( Omri Katz ) unwittingly resurrects the Sanderson Sisters , and so he , his sister Dani ( Thora Birch ) , and his crush Allison ( Vinessa Shaw ) have to determine a agency to get disembarrass of them before they enfeeble the life-time force out of all the nipper in Salem so they can extend live .
Related : How Hocus Pocus ' Sanderson Sisters Get Witches Right ( When Others Fail )
AlthoughHocus Pocuswas ab initio get with sundry brushup and did n’t do well at the box government agency , it has now become a cult classic , and after almost three decade , it lastly got a sequel , simply titledHocus Pocus 2 . The original movie helped make its immature star topology known in the entertainment industry , and Leonardo DiCaprio was almost part of the fun , but he ferment the office down in parliamentary procedure to take another , very dissimilar one .
How Would Hocus Pocus Be Different With Leonardo DiCaprio?
talk toVarietyin 2014 , Leonardo DiCaprio share that he was declare oneself “ more money than I ever stargaze of ” to takea role inHocus Pocus , which would have been that of Max Dennison . Even though the whirl sound tempting , DiCaprio decided to turn it down as he had set eyes on an indie project for which he had n’t even auditioned yet : What ’s Eating Gilbert Grape . DiCaprio recalled that he did n’t know where he got the nervus to turn such a big offer down , but he ’s proud of “ being a youthful Isle of Man who was sticking to my guns ” . DiCaprio ’s decision turned out to be the right one , as he nonplus the part of Arnie , the mentally impaired younger brother of the championship Gilbert Grape ( Johnny Depp ) , for which he was nominated for different awards , including the Academy Award for Best Supporting Actor .
As mentioned above , Hocus Pocuswasn’t well - obtain when it was released , with critics saying that it did n’t go up to the talents of its primary cast of characters and there was little progress in the news report . Had Leonardo DiCaprio occupy the purpose of Max , Hocus Pocus ’ critical reception would n’t have changed much , except that there would have most likely been praise forDiCaprio ’s performance . The problem withHocus Pocus(according to critics ) was its narration and comedic style , which did n’t quite connect with most viewers , so even if DiCaprio had starred in it , not much would have changed . On the other script , had DiCaprio played Max inHocus Pocus , he would n’t have been capable to asterisk inWhat ’s Eating Gilbert Grape , which might have not unfold as many doors to him as the movie did , but he surely would have still find a agency to constitute himself in the flick diligence . As forHocus Pocus , time has been heavy to it , and it ’s now considered a classic of Halloween season , which was bound to happen with or without Leonardo DiCaprio in the cast .
