Fans hoped Practical Magic 2 would turn its witchy family drama into a more openly queer story, especially with Maisie Williams playing Antonia Owens. Instead, the film leaves Antonia's sexuality unclear, although Williams has said she approached the character as sapphic, giving the sequel a tantalising glimpse of the story it might have told.

Essential Takeaways

  • The book is clearer: Antonia is lesbian in the source material, while the film keeps her sexuality open to interpretation.
  • Williams made a choice: The actor has described playing Antonia as a sapphic figure, even when the final edit didn't confirm it.
  • The context matters: Antonia's perspective on men could have added a fresh layer to the Owens family story.
  • A third film is possible: Sandra Bullock has suggested a future sequel could centre on Antonia and Kylie.
  • Streaming is still ahead: Industry coverage expects the film to move to streaming after its cinema run.

Practical Magic 2 leaves a queer story on the table

The most frustrating thing about Practical Magic 2 isn't that Antonia's sexuality is never announced with a neat cinematic label. It's that the character seems to have been built with a richer possibility in mind, then softened before audiences could properly see it.

According to CinemaBlend, Antonia has a larger role in the sequel than some fans might have expected. That gives her enough room to become more than the next generation of Owens magic, yet the finished film reportedly stops short of making her queerness explicit. The result feels less like mystery and more like a door left carefully ajar.

That choice is particularly noticeable because the Practical Magic world already has a natural connection to outsiders, inherited power and women making their own rules. A sapphic Antonia wouldn't have felt bolted on. She would've fitted the house, the family and the slightly stormy atmosphere perfectly.

Maisie Williams played Antonia with a sapphic reading

Williams appears to have understood the assignment, even if the film didn't quite follow through. Coverage from Filmofilia and PixelTwelve highlights her decision to approach Antonia as sapphic, bringing an internal perspective that differs from the other women around her.

That interpretation could change the texture of otherwise familiar scenes. If Antonia isn't looking at men with the same romantic interest as her relatives, she can observe the family's relationships from a more detached, perhaps more knowing angle. It's a small performance choice, but small choices are often where character lives.

The frustrating part is that viewers may only sense this intention rather than experience it as story. Williams can play Antonia as a sapphic icon, but an actor's private character work can't replace a plot that gives the audience something tangible to hold on to.

This is part of a familiar adaptation problem

The move echoes a long-running pattern in film and television, where queer characters are more visible in books than in their screen versions. PinkNews placed the Practical Magic 2 discussion within that wider debate, while the original commentary points to examples including Fried Green Tomatoes and The Color Purple.

Sometimes the change is dramatic. Sometimes it's a glance removed, a line rewritten or a relationship made deliberately ambiguous. Each decision can be defended as subtlety, but the cumulative effect is hard to miss: queer audiences are asked to recognise themselves in implication while straight romance receives the full spotlight.

That feels especially dated in a franchise built around women, sisterhood and magical outsiders. The witches have always carried a little cultural sparkle beyond the literal spellwork. Leaving every central woman apparently straight makes the world feel narrower than it needs to be.

What could a third film do differently?

There may still be a route back. Sandra Bullock has discussed the possibility of a third Practical Magic film focused on Antonia and Kylie, played by Joey King. CinemaBlend's reporting on the franchise's future makes that potential handover sound like a natural next step rather than a completely fanciful idea.

A film centred on the younger generation could also reset the rules. Antonia would no longer be a supporting daughter whose identity sits just behind the main plot. She could become the emotional centre, with her relationships, magic and family history driving the story.

If that happens, the creative team should resist treating queerness as a marketing flourish. Give Antonia a love interest, a complicated crush or simply a life that doesn't orbit men. The best version wouldn't need to over-explain her; it would let her be as gloriously, messily specific as any straight character.

Choosing hope without ignoring the disappointment

Practical Magic 2 still has the ingredients of an appealing supernatural family story: an established world, a younger generation and an actor determined to bring extra meaning to the role. Streaming interest is likely to keep the conversation moving once more viewers catch up, as Tom's Guide's release coverage suggests.

But fans are right to notice what's missing. Representation isn't only about whether a character can technically be read as queer. It's also about who gets desire, conflict, tenderness and a future on screen.

For now, Antonia exists in an awkward in-between space: lesbian in the source material, sapphic in Williams' performance and officially undefined in the film. That's better than nothing, but it isn't the same as letting her story cast its own spell.

A future Practical Magic sequel has the chance to make Antonia's queerness part of the magic, not another detail left in the shadows.

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