Practical Magic 2 (2026 | USA | 130 minutes | Susanne Bier)
We’ve all heard the stories of the Owens sisters, but it’s been 28 years since we’ve seen them on the big screen. Practical Magic 2 brings back (most of) the original cast, deepens the lore of magic, and introduces the audience to new characters to both love and hate.
While the film comes 28 years after the original, only about 15 years seem to have passed in the cinematic world of Practical Magic 2. Sally (Sandra Bullock) is now a twice-widowed single mom of two twenty-somethings, Kylie (Joey King) and Antonia (Maisie Williams), who has sworn off magic forever. But unfortunately for her, it’s hard to swear off a deadly curse that’s infected your bloodline for generations, no matter how bad you want to. When Kylie’s boyfriend Gideon (Xolo Maridueña) seems to fall victim to the curse, a desperate Kylie sets off to England armed only with a powerful spell book to try to break the curse.
We once again are blessed with three generations of Owens sisters, Franny (Stockard Channing) and Jet (Dianne Wiest), affectionately known as “the Aunts,” practical and responsible Sally and her wild child sister Gillian (Nicole Kidman), and Sally’s daughters. But it seems not even a film focused on sisterhood can manage to maintain six interesting female characters. Aunt Jet gets a disappointingly small amount of screentime and Antonia is left behind in Massachusets to watch over Gideon while the rest of the family saves the world (or at least their family) in England. It’s a film about female friendships, but the story doesn’t even allow for any female relationships to thrive outside of Sally and Gillian.
It’s hard to criticize the filmmakers too much for overly focusing on the original heroines. Bullock and Kidman have unmistakable chemistry and slip back into their characters as if no time has passed. It’s nostalgic and comforting to watch them on screen together again. But it’s hard not to notice the gaping hole left by Antonia in some of the film’s biggest scenes. Kylie’s quest for answers is ultimately aided by her mom and aunt, while her sister is left with mundane scenes seemingly there to remind the audience of Gideon’s existence.
While a cheesier film may have assumed the audience would care about Kylie’s journey for true love’s sake alone, Practical Magic 2 builds up Gideon’s character and his relationship with Kylie in a way that makes you truly fall in love with him right alongside Kylie. It’s in no small part thanks to Maridueña’s incredible performance. He was able to take a very limited amount of screen time to give Gideon a depth lesser actors would have failed to portray. It’s a small blessing, but one of the many ways Practical Magic 2 rises above a cheesy rom-com sequel.
The film is filled with small moments of genuine hilarity and heart. The film allows moments to play out longer than expected, pulling the audience into the mundane moments that make a family. Amidst the (cheesy) magic and curses, the Owens manage to be like any other sisters: desperate for true love, obsessed with their family, and laden with inside jokes that come only from a relationship as close as sisters.
While it’s definitely aimed at nostalgia and fan service, Practical Magic 2 is a refreshingly creative sequel, strengthening the world of magic and bringing the audience deeper into the lives of the Owens sisters. It’s a new take on a similar moral: “No magic is stronger than sisterhood.”
Practical Magic 2 arrives in theaters on September 11
Image courtesy of Warner Bros.