Not every long-awaited reunion is written into the story. Nearly three decades after Practical Magic first cast its spell on audiences, Evan Rachel Wood has admitted she is still “sad” about not returning for the sequel, saying its new creative direction no longer follows the novel in a way that would have brought Kylie Owens back. While the actress believes the original book left room for her return, she now understands why the filmmakers chose to take a different path.

Yet for Wood, the hardest part was never missing the sequel, but missing the people who made the original unforgettable. 

Speaking to Entertainment Tonight on the red carpet of The Shards premiere, Evan Rachel Wood reflected on being absent from Practical Magic 2, calling the experience “sad” after sharing such a close bond with the cast as a child. The actress said returning to the iconic Owens' house years later alongside the original cast was a moment she had always imagined, believing the history they carried together could never be recreated with new faces. 

“It is sad, because we bonded with that cast so much as children, and so to miss out on the opportunity to look at that cast and look at that house as an adult and see the history in our eyes, it’s something that can’t be faked,” Wood told Entertainment Tonight.

Reading Alice Hoffman’s The Book of Magic only made Wood’s absence harder to reconcile. Revealing further to Entertainment Tonight, Wood said the novel would have naturally welcomed Kylie Owens back, but believes the sequel has charted a different course, leaving little room for her return. Wood famously played Sally Owens’ eldest daughter in the 1998 fantasy classic alongside Sandra Bullock and Nicole Kidman.

This time, however, Kylie is being reimagined with Joey King, while Maisie Williams steps into the role of Sally’s younger daughter, Antonia. Even so, the sequel still reunites much of its original magic, with Bullock and Kidman returning as both stars and producers alongside Stockard Channing and Dianne Wiest, who once again step into the beloved roles of Franny and Jet.

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While the witches of Practical Magic move forward without her, Evan Rachel Wood’s own story is already unfolding in an entirely different direction.

Although Practical Magic 2 will not be part of her journey, 2026 remains an eventful year for Evan Rachel Wood. The actress recently celebrated the New York premiere of FX and Hulu’s psychological thriller The Shards, where she takes on a recurring role in Ryan Murphy and Bret Easton Ellis’ chilling adaptation. Set inside an elite Los Angeles prep school in 1981, the series follows a group of privileged students whose lives spiral into terror as a serial killer begins stalking their world.

Away from the screen, Wood continues expanding her creative range through voice work as journalist Vicki Vale in the second season of Spotify and DC’s Batman Unburied. The projects add another chapter to a career already shaped by standout performances across television, from HBO’s Westworld, where her portrayal of Dolores Abernathy earned Emmy and Golden Globe recognition, to acclaimed turns in Mildred Pierce and True Blood.

However, as the Owens family may be returning to the big screen, for many fans, Evan Rachel Wood’s absence could remain the sequel’s most talked-about missing piece.

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Do you think Evan Rachel Wood should have returned as Kylie Owens in Practical Magic 2? Let us know in the comments.