Salem has hosted organized Hocus Pocus gatherings, but nine-year-old Taylor Nuss’s recent encounter with two actors from the film began with a costume and a line. Taylor, who has dressed as Dani Dennison each October since she was 4, met Larry Bagby and Tobias Jelinek—the actors who played Ice and Jay—during the Buncha Halloween event in Salem, People reported.
Taylor’s mother, Jenna, suggested that her daughter approach the actors with a line from the movie. Taylor did, and the three briefly acted out part of the trick-or-treat scene. Taylor delivered Dani’s “Drop dead, moron!” before Bagby and Jelinek responded in character, according to People. The report describes the exchange as an informal encounter, not a scheduled performance.
Salem’s connection to the film
The setting has a useful distinction: although Taylor’s encounter took place in Salem, the original film’s daytime cemetery scenes with Max and the bullies were shot at Old Burial Hill in nearby Marblehead, Destination Salem notes. The scene Taylor reenacted was a different part of the movie.
Salem has nevertheless been a site for planned cast-and-fan celebrations. Creative Collective described a separate 30th-anniversary Hocus Pocus weekend in downtown Salem in October 2023. More recently, Bagby and Jelinek joined other cast members for a Salem-area reunion and film events, according to People and Bloody Disgusting. Those scheduled gatherings provide context for the city’s film-fan events; they do not establish that Taylor’s sidewalk exchange was part of a planned program.
A moment beyond the event schedule
The encounter continued the next day when Bagby recognized Taylor outside Salem’s Pickering House and greeted her with more of Ice’s lines, Boston.com reported. Jenna recorded the initial exchange, and Taylor later shared the video with her teacher and classmates, according to People. The reports describe a memorable experience for the family, but do not indicate that it was arranged by the event organizers.
