Kathy Najimy explains why Mary is smiling backwards in 'Hocus Pocus 2'

There's something about Mary...

Eagle-eyed fans tuning into Hocus Pocus 2 spotted something different going on with Kathy Najimy's character, Mary Sanderson.

The sequel to the hit 1993 movie, Hocus Pocus - a comedic film starring Najimy, Sarah Jessica Parker, and Bette Midler as a trio of witch sisters who are accidentally resurrected by a virgin teenage boy in Salem, Massachusetts - came out on September 30.

Najimy's character, Mary, has a trademark crooked smile - which saw her mouth skewed to the right in a spur-of-the-moment quirk Najimy added to her character during filming. However, her mouth now skews to the left in the new movie.

While fans might have expected some deeper meaning to the change, Najimy told Entertainment Weekly that wasn't the case: "It's on the other side mainly because it's so hard for me to do it on the side I did it on 30 years ago. I'm sure the fans are going to go into deep detail about why it's on the other side."

"It's just something I came up with the first week. This is a big comedy, so you don't have to be subtle or have a 40-page Shakespearean backstory," she added.

Najimy continues that they offer fans a subtle explanation to the change in the flick, stating: "We can justify it because there's a scene at the beginning where Winnie [Bette Midler] slaps me, and my mouth goes to the other side, and then she slaps me again and it goes to the other side, and sticks."

Najimy's character, Mary, has a trademark crooked smile - which saw her mouth skewed to the right in a spur-of-the-moment quirk Najimy added to her character during filming. However, her mouth now skews to the left in the new movie. Credit: AJ Pics / Alamy

During a break from filming the sequel in 2021, Najimy revealed to People that she had broken a rib, stating: "The day I wrapped, I went over to my friend's house. And I saw that she had one of those machines that you put your legs in and you go upside down and it stretches you, because I have one. And I said, 'Oh my God, I have one of these in home.'"

However: "It flipped up, my foot didn't quite make it into the thing ... and I fell like an accordion. And broke my rib."

"So my whole week off that we were supposed to enjoy the holidays, I was healing, but it's fine. And then I was back at work wrapped up. Half the movie, I have a broken rib," the 65-year-old added.

The latest instalment to the Halloween cult classic sees the Sanderson sisters - Winnie, Mary, and Sarah - once again resurrected by some young teens on Halloween night. The flick also takes viewers back in time to 1600s New England, where the origins of the witches began.

"[We] explain how they got to the point where they gladly become witches. They're so tight as sisters, and that's explained. It's quite satisfying," Midler told Entertainment Weekly.

The original 1993 Hocus Pocus at first did not receive positive reviews, losing Disney $16.5 million during its run in theaters - however, it has slowly become a cult classic over the years after being regularly shown throughout the month of October.

Now, Hocus Pocus 2 is available to watch on Disney+, with fans of the original already falling in love with the sequel. After all, it's all just a bunch of Hocus Pocus.

Featured image credit: AJ Pics / Alamy