Hocus Pocus is the Holy Grail of Halloween movies.
Released in 1993, the story is now 25 years old and most of us know it off by heart.
The plot goes: LA teenager Max Dennison is the new guy at his Salem school, it's Halloween, and three sister witches come back from the dead after 300 years to suck the life out of all of the kids in the town.
The cast fits seamlessly into the plot - Thora Birch as fiery kid Dani definitely steals all the scenes she's in.
But a completely different actor was all lined up to be the lead character, Max in the form of Hollywood heavyweight Leo DiCaprio.
Hocus Pocus director Kenny Ortega has said that Leo was the original inspiration for the character.
He said, ''the [casting] ladies called me up and they said, ‘We’re sending you an actor today but he’s not available but you're going to fall in love with him but you can’t have him. You need to see this guy because he’ll inspire you and if nothing else, he’ll help you find the right guy to play Max.''
He continued, "and they send me in a young Leonardo DiCaprio, who I completely and absolutely fall in love with. He’s just the most sincere and most centered and a wild child at the same time."
However young Leo chose to star in What’s Eating Gilbert Grape instead of the Halloween classic.
And Kenny was happy with who they got to play Max instead.
He said, ''obviously, he left and incredible things happened for that young man, but meeting him awakened me to the kind of spirit and fun and sincerity that I was looking for in an actor and when Omri Katz came around, I fell in love again and he was our Max."
Leo DiCaprio was offered the role of Max Dennison in Hocus Pocus but turned it down. Think about how good that would have been. Think....
— Lauren Teminsky (@LaurenTeminsky) March 26, 2014
Leo has opened up about being offered so much money to play Max Dennison.
He said how he was surprised at his own brazenness in turning the role down before he had even gotten the part.
He said, "I don’t know where the hell I got the nerve. You live in an environment where by people telling you to make a lot of money and strike while the iron’s hot. But if there’s one thing I’m very proud of, it’s being a young man who was sticking to my guns.''
What do you think - stick with Omri or would Leo have been a better choice?
