Rosie O'Donnell Reveals She Turned Down 'Hocus Pocus' Role: 'I Didn't Want to Play the Fat, Mean Witch'

Rosie O'Donnell is recalling why she "just felt like I had to say no" to a role in Hocus Pocus.

While speaking with The Hollywood Reporter for an interview in the outlet's Pride month celebration, O'Donnell, 61, confirmed that she turned down an offer to play the witch Mary Sanderson in the 1993 Halloween cult classic, a part that eventually went to Kathy Najimy.

"Because I didn’t want to play the fat, mean witch who eats and kills kids," O'Donnell explained of why she turned down the role. "Even though it was Bette Midler, who was like, my favorite, and Sarah Jessica Parker."

"I just couldn’t do it. I couldn’t do a part where I would be mean to kids and the joke was about the [character's] size," she told the outlet. "I just felt like I had to say no for that."

O'Donnell, who made her film debut in 1992's A League of Their Own after gaining fame for her stand-up comedy work through the '80s, responded with a clear "No" when THR asked whether she holds any regret over not taking the Hocus Pocus role.

"And I think Kathy’s fantastic in it. You know, she does that face. I don’t even know how she does it," she said. Elsewhere in O'Donnell's interview with THR, the actress and comedian referred to Hocus Pocus star Middler as "one of the archetypal women that I grew up to and wanted to be around" during a wide-ranging discussion about her own career and life as a gay woman and single mother.

Hocus Pocus, though not an initial critical or box office success, gained a second life as a cult classic for its Halloween-themed plot. Back in October, Disney released a sequel on Disney+ that saw Najimy, 66, reprise her role as Mary alongside returning cast members Parker, Midler, and Doug Jones.

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Hocus Pocus 2 broke a number of streaming records upon its release, and Walt Disney Studios Motion Picture Production president Sean Bailey confirmed to The New York Times on June 4 that the studio is officially developing the series' third installment.

While Disney has not made any official announcements regarding production on the next Hocus Pocus movie, Midler, 77, Najimy and Parker, 58, have each said they are open to making a third film starring the Sanderson sisters.

"I've always been envious of people who get to do their favorite character more than once," Midler told Entertainment Weekly back in September. "I'd love to have a franchise — especially a character I love playing."

"I feel like we're done. "We've pulled every story you could pull out of this," Najimy initially said while speaking with the outlet, though she did slightly walk that back. "I guess, never say never, but I feel grateful that we got to do it again," she added at the time.