Why is movie ‘Hocus Pocus 2’ blowing up Google search this weekend?

More than 2 million people in one day searched Google for information on “Hocus Pocus 2,” the go-down-easy Disney+ Halloween sequel for families starring Bette Midler, Sarah Jessica Parker and Kathy Najimy as the Sanderson sisters.

“Hocus Pocus 2” finds the sisters Winifred (Midler), Sarah (Parker) and Mary (Najimy) unleashed on their present day town once more. This time it’s some coven-curious teenage girls Becca (Whitney Peak) and Izzy (Belissa Escobedo) who accidentally resurrect the witches and then try to outwit them where they can.

The sequel debuted to mixed reviews. What makes this “Hocus Pocus” gel according to CNN’s reviewer is the nifty mix of old and new, replicating the basic template from the original while introducing a new and more diverse contingent of teens to do battle with the centuries-old witches.

The Associated Press reviewer said a straight-to-Disney+ sequel made 30 years later seemed like a cynical endeavor at best. So it was a pleasant surprise to her to find that “ Hocus Pocus 2 ” is actually pretty fun. “Set in a Stars Hollow-like Salem, it’s the perfect Disney+ movie — seasonally appropriate entertainment that, for at least one night, may save a family from the doom of endless scrolling and indecision.”

Read more about what director Anne Fletcher and actor Sam Richardson felt about making the movie.

Not so interested? Here’s a rundown of everything new in theaters or streaming this weekend.

Halloween is less than a month away, and in this special encore presentation of our podcast “Streamed & Screened” hosted by longtime movie critic Bruce Miller, we look at some of the scariest movies around. Expect some horror classics for sure but also some curveballs …