Practical Magic 2 Dethrones Spider-Man: Brand New Day at the Box Office

By the Filmoria News Desk

Official poster © Warner Bros. Pictures, via Wikipedia.

Practical Magic 2 Knocks Spider-Man Off Its Six-Week Perch

Warner Bros. finally has something to celebrate at the multiplex. Practical Magic 2, the long-gestating sequel to the 1998 cult favourite, opened in North American cinemas on Friday and looks set to end a losing streak that’s dogged the studio for most of the year. Early estimates put the four-day domestic haul somewhere between $30 million and $40 million, comfortably enough to bump Spider-Man: Brand New Day from the top of the chart after six consecutive weekends at number one.

It’s not a blockbuster number by any stretch, but context matters here. Warner Bros. hadn’t crossed the $100 million domestic mark with a single release all year as of this September, a drought the trade press has been quick to point out hasn’t happened at the studio since 2001. A witchy sequel with a $75 million budget clearing that bar even eventually would count as a genuine turnaround.

Thursday preview screenings brought in roughly $4.7 million, a modest but respectable start that tracking services read as a sign the built-in fanbase for the original film was showing up early. Sandra Bullock and Nicole Kidman reprise their roles as sisters Sally and Gillian Owens, with the story jumping forward a generation to focus on Sally’s daughter Kylie, played by Joey King, as she starts pulling on threads of a family history she was never supposed to know about.

Quick Facts

• Film: Practical Magic 2
• Studio: Warner Bros. Pictures / New Line Cinema
• Director: Susanne Bier
• Writers: Akiva Goldsman, Georgia Pritchett, Kelly Marcel
• Cast: Sandra Bullock, Nicole Kidman, Joey King, Xolo Maridueña, Lee Pace, Solly McLeod, Dianne Wiest, Stockard Channing
• Release date: September 11, 2026 (North America)
• Budget: Approximately $75 million
• Opening estimate: $30–$40 million (four-day domestic)

Why This Matters for Warner Bros.

Legacy sequels are a gamble even when the original has staying power, and Practical Magic is a strange case: a film that flopped with critics in 1998 and only found its audience years later through cable reruns and word of mouth among a specific, devoted crowd. Warner has clearly bet that nostalgia plus a starry cast can do what quality control couldn’t the first time around, and going by ticket sales, that bet is paying off, at least commercially.

Spider-Man: Brand New Day isn’t going anywhere either. Six weeks at number one is a rare feat in an era where films are lucky to hold the top spot for two, and Sony will still bank a healthy second-place finish this weekend. But the streak ending matters symbolically. It’s the first real signal since the summer that audiences are willing to show up for something that isn’t a superhero picture, a sequel to an established franchise built around adult women rather than a cinematic universe.

Distributors will also be watching the film’s legs closely. Fantasy-adjacent films with a strong female fanbase, think Wicked or the recent Hocus Pocus revival on streaming, tend to hold better than they open, riding word of mouth and repeat viewing rather than frontloading on opening weekend. If Practical Magic 2 follows that pattern, the eventual total could look considerably better than the modest Friday numbers suggest.

What Comes Next

The sequel finds Sally dealing with the return of the Owens family curse after her new husband dies suddenly not long after their wedding. To protect her daughters from the same fate, she casts a spell to make them forget their magical heritage altogether, a plan that predictably unravels once Kylie falls for a boy whose life ends up in danger. The plot sends the family across the Atlantic in search of an old grimoire, the Book of Ravens, with aunts Frances and Bridget (Wiest and Channing) along for the ride providing comic relief.

Whether audiences stick around depends heavily on how the film plays outside its opening weekend crowd, since reviews from critics who saw it early have been largely unkind (Filmoria’s own take runs elsewhere on the site this week). Still, for a studio that’s had precious little to smile about in 2026, a number one opening is a number one opening, and Warner Bros. will happily take the win while it lasts.

Frequently Asked Questions

1. Did Practical Magic 2 actually beat Spider-Man: Brand New Day at the box office?
Early estimates suggest yes. Practical Magic 2’s four-day opening, projected between $30 million and $40 million, is expected to be enough to take the number one spot away from Spider-Man: Brand New Day, which had held it for six straight weekends.

2. Who stars in Practical Magic 2?
Sandra Bullock and Nicole Kidman return as Sally and Gillian Owens, joined by Joey King as Sally’s daughter Kylie, along with Xolo Maridueña, Lee Pace, Solly McLeod, Dianne Wiest and Stockard Channing.

3. Is Practical Magic 2 a direct sequel to the 1998 film?
Yes. It picks up roughly 25 years after the original and shifts focus to the next generation of the Owens family, centring on Kylie as she uncovers secrets about her family’s witchcraft.

4. How much did Practical Magic 2 cost to make?
Reported budget figures put the production cost at around $75 million.

5. Why is this box office result significant for Warner Bros.?
As of this September, Warner Bros. had not had a single film cross $100 million domestically in 2026, reportedly its weakest run of the kind since 2001. A strong opening and healthy hold for Practical Magic 2 would mark a rare bright spot in an otherwise difficult year at the box office for the studio.