Disney made many fan of the 1993 spooky classic Hocus Pocus 2 very happy last year when they finally confirmed rumors that Bette Midler, Sarah Jessica Parker and Kathy Najimy would be reprising their roles as the Sanderson Sisters for a Disney+ exclusive sequel. In the last few weeks a number of videos shot by Rhode Island residents, as well as articles in local press, have revealed the purpose built set being created in fields ready for filming to begin imminently in the state. Thanks to a new report from the local publication The Providence Journal, we now know that filming has started on the movie, which is expected to land on Disney+ just in time for Halloween 2022.

According to the site, a crew arrived at La Salle Academy on Tuesday and were also returning the following day to continue the shoot. The private Catholic School put up a board outside the site which read, "Notice - Filming Today. Fairy Dust Productions, Inc. will be filming at La Salle Academy today. By entering, you hereby irrevocably consent to and authorize Fairy Dust Productions, Inc., its successors and assigns, to photograph you and/or make sound recordings of you and to use the same worldwide, for any purpose whatsoever in perpetuity; all such photographs and sound recordings to be the sole property of Fairy Dust Productions, Inc."

While the announcement didn't specifically name Hocus Pocus 2, Fairy Dust Productions is the company producing the movie and there are no other movie productions currently scheduled to take place in Rhode Island other than the Disney sequel. Over the course of the day, production staff frequently ushered those not linked to the filming away from the immediate area, while filming went on inside the building as many students continued about their regular day. Extras were noted to be wandering around the sidewalk just outside the building, presumably to provide background movement for indoor shots that could see out through the school's windows.

It was originally announced that the production on Hocus Pocus 2 would last for 10 weeks in the town of Lincoln, although the production company will have a further 18 months to return if they require more filming in the same location. As well as Chase Farm park in Lincoln, where a 1600s New England Village has been erected and is expected to be burned down as part of the shoot, other locations in Rhode Island being used for the movie are Cranston Street Armory, Providence and Newport. Instagram User Luna Moon Gothic posted a number of close up shots of the village set, including an overhead shot of the entire structure, which has been built around one of the roads running through the park area.

There are currently few details being released by Disney about the sequel but IMDb contains the plot summary of, "Three young women accidentally bring back the Sanderson Sisters to modern day Salem and must figure out how to stop the child-hungry witches from wreaking havoc on the world." As yet none of the major stars of the movie have been seen, but with a number of very keen local residents and media on site, it is likely that it won't be too much longer before we get sight of the Sanderson Sisters again.

Hocus Pocus 2 has no set release date, but will arrive sometime next Fall.