hokum pocus

Bette Midler is single-handedly tanking ‘Hocus Pocus 2’ with her tweets and OMFG what a disaster

Screenshot: Disney

Bubble, bubble, Bette’s in trouble.

Unless you’re a long-dead witch waiting for a virgin to light the Black Flame Candle during a full moon so you can be resurrected, chances are you’ve seen stage and screen legend Bette Midler’s unfortunate tweets of late.

She’s been on a tear this past week, spouting transphobic rhetoric and then only making it worse in her attempts to clarify what she meant—not to mention her knock on the Supreme Court, which many have called out as racist and Islamophobic.

It’s all been a bit difficult to stomach, especially for fans who have long considered Midler to be an ally to the LGBTQ community. Between her work on Broadway and roles in iconic films like Beaches and The First Wives Club, some might even call the actress a gay icon. But after her latest statements, it’s difficult to argue she still deserves the title.

Related: The rift between SJP and Kim Cattrall just got a little more complicated thanks to Kathy Najimy

And, for a generation of gays who grew up on Hocus Pocus, she’s single-handedly tanking anticipation for the Halloween staple’s long-awaited sequel. As many have pointed out, Midler’s tasteless tweets are a huge buzzkill for the film—just as its promotional blitz was starting to heat up. Should Disney be worried about Winifred Sanderson putting a curse on Hocus Pocus 2‘s name before anyone’s even been able to see it?

With the sequel slated to debut on Disney+ on September 30, perhaps it’s best if Midler stays off the internet for the rest of the summer.

Naturally, Twitter has a lot of thoughts about what this all could mean for Hocus Pocus 2—here are just a few of our favorite reactions. Hang onto your heads!

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