'Hocus Pocus 2' is coming to Disney+ from 'Hairspray' director Adam Shankman

The highly anticipated sequel to 1993 Halloween classic Hocus Pocus is pressing ahead over at Disney+, with Hairspray filmmaker Adam Shankman hopping into the director’s chair.

Variety has reported that Shankman, who also helmed musical Rock of Ages and several episodes of Glee, will direct from a script by Jen D’Angelo.

He still has the Enchanted sequel — currently titled Disenchanted — in the works at Disney and it’s unclear which project will take priority.

Read more: Disney+ offering pre-launch deal to UK fans

The original Hocus Pocus told the story of the three Sanderson sisters — witches who were inadvertently resurrected after 300 years and shocked to discover Halloween had become a commercial holiday.

Bette Midler, Kathy Najimy and Sarah Jessica Parker played the trio of witches.

Hocus Pocus was a box office disappointment in 1993, scoring just under $40m (£31m) worldwide and reportedly losing Disney around $16m (£12.4m).

It would go on to become a cult classic, however, with sales of the videos and subsequently DVDs soaring over the Halloween period every year.

Read more: How Hocus Pocus became a Halloween classic

News of the Disney+ Hocus Pocus sequel first broke in October 2019, sending fans into a frenzy.

Bette Midler has said she’d love to appear and Sarah Jessica Parker appeared to confirm that the entire central trio is at least open to taking part.

Hocus Pocus is not the only nostalgic 90s property being geared up for the Disney streaming platform, with Emilio Estevez returning for a Mighty Ducks reboot series.

Disney+ is set to launch in the UK on 24 March, after its popular launch in the USA saw the website struggling to keep up with demand.

British viewers will have access to an extensive back catalogue of films and TV shows, including more than 600 episodes of The Simpsons.

Read more: What you can watch on Disney+ at launch in the UK

Among the content available in the early days will be Star Wars spin-off series The Mandalorian, with the streamer’s Marvel Cinematic Universe shows due to arrive from this summer, starting with The Falcon and the Winter Soldier.