“The film aims to emphasise the importance of sisterly relationships, and yet, it sidelines Antonia”
BY GABI STUBBINGS, IMAGE BY WARNER BROS
As I sat watching Practical Magic 2, it was clear that something was missing. It wasn’t just nostalgia for the nineties whimsigoth of the original. Nor was it the way it steered heavily into clunky product placement, making it feel devoid of charm. It wasn’t even the confusing romantic tension between onscreen sisters Sandra Bullock and Nicole Kidman. It was the absence of the lesbian storyline present in the source material that most upset me.
Warning: Spoilers lay ahead for the Practical Magic films and Alice Hoffman’s novel The Book Of Magic
The film is an adaptation of Alice Hoffman’s novel The Book Of Magic. The novel returns to the story of witch sisters Sally and Gillian Owens – portrayed by Sandra and Nicole in both films. The book also focuses on the dynamic between Sally’s daughters Kylie and Antonia (played by Joey King and Maisie Williams respectively in the sequel). In The Book Of Magic, Antonia was explicitly written as a lesbian. Yet this detail seems to have been purposefully erased in Practical Magic 2.
During the press run, interviewers have been quick to ask the actors about the lesbian subtext in the film. In one interview, Maisie said that she “always played Antonia as a sapphic icon”. After watching, I questioned whether this was enough in a movie that never confirms but only hints at this character’s queerness.
I aired my frustrations over what felt like yet another instance of lesbian erasure in mainstream media. People on social media were quick to remind me that Antonia’s character did have two short glances at another woman during the final scenes. It’s notable that Antonia’s love interest is not even named in the film, but is later revealed as “Laura” in the end credits. This speaks further to the small part Antonia and her lesbianism has in the sequel. Antonia’s sexuality is conveyed through a couple of blink-and-you-miss-it second-long stares.
In the book, Antonia plays an instrumental role in the breaking of the family’s curse, which plagues the men that the women fall in love with. She winds up heavily pregnant – having entered into a non-traditional coparenting agreement with her queer best friend and his husband. Due to this she can’t travel to England with her mother and aunt. Despite this, she helps her sister from afar to understand her family’s history while also falling in love with a woman called Ariel.
When adapting a book to screen, a certain number of creative changes are to be expected. The film aims to emphasise the importance of sisterly relationships, and yet, it sidelines Antonia. This decision is disappointing to both queer audiences and readers of the book. We only really get to see Antonia during the family reunion scenes which bookend the length run time. We, of course, also see her stand concernedly bedside the bedside of her sister’s comatose boyfriend.
Strangely, there seems to be more queerness present between sisters Sally and Gillian. We see Gillian non-consensually pantsing Sally in one scene (as adult siblings are, of course, frequently known to do). In another scene, Gillian almost seems to lean in to kiss Sally.
Lesbian audiences deserve more. We are constantly censored or hidden by big budget projects. I’m still disappointed by Netflix’s removal of scenes confirming the romance between Arcane’s Caitlyn and Vi for Chinese audiences. In a fight for representation, it can feel as though we are losing. Yes, Maisie stated she played Antonia as a “sapphic icon”. However, without the time or space to communicate this to audiences, her statement ultimately becomes meaningless. Sadly, Practical Magic 2 has become another example of lesbian erasure within mainstream media.
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