Some girls wanted to be princesses growing up. Others wanted to be a queen. But, the rest of us wanted to be witches. And hey, why wouldn’t we? Witches get to cast spells, fly across the night sky on a broom, brew potions, and take on (or become) the evil in the world. With their unique sense of style and obvious spooky charm, hands down: witches are the queens of Halloween.
And while some may be a teensy bit out of control, Hollywood has given us some truly inspiring witches to look up to. They even had us wanting to grab a broom back in the day. From the Sanderson sisters in Hocus Pocus to the uber-friendly Wendy in Casper Meets Wendy, here are 17 witches who’ve had us under their spell since the beginning of time.
1. Sarah, Bonnie, Rochelle, and Nancy in The Craft
Raise your hand if you ever wanted to call the corners after seeing this crew do it? Us too! These four young witches had us dreaming about getting revenge on our high school bullies and eliminating our skin problems whenever we watched this flick. And although that walking on water scene with Nancy was a bit terrifying, we loved how the friends fully embraced being their “weird” selves.
2. Marnie Piper in Halloweentown
If Marnie was right about anything, it was definitely that Halloween was cool. Once she discovered she was a witch and snuck away to Halloweentown we were super jealous. A town that celebrates this magical holiday each and every day? What a dream! She was determined, fearless, and a quick thinker — all traits we wished to emmulate growing up.
3. Wendy in Casper Meets Wendy
Having a ghost for a best friend? So jealous! She even had three witches for aunts and was played by Hilary Duff, an added bonus for our obsession. We could do without the creepy warlock who was interested in stealing her powers, but we loved her sassy demeanor and her frequent cartwheeling from danger.
4. Louise Miller in Teen Witch
Carrying around a clunky wand was sooooo ’90s. Louise had something less obvious in the ’80s; her magic rested in the form of a necklace worn around her neck. Additionally, the reincarnated witch had a knack for popularity spells and catchy rap routines that made us super envious.
5. Sabrina Spellman on Sabrina the Teenage Witch
Some teens may have a ton of attitude, but Sabrina redifined what it meant to be witchy post-puberty. While she ocassionally created mayhem for her family and friends, she always had the best intentions at heart. Best of all she had the coolest, supernatural and sassy side-kick: Salem the cat and a pretty amazing wardrobe. Plus, her boyfriend was totally swoon-worthy!
6. Willow Rosenberg on Buffy the Vampire Slayer
What do you get when you mix beauty, brains, and magic? None other than Willow Rosenberg. She combined her inner nerd with her witchy ways to defeat demons, protect her pals and you know, save the world. Who didn’t want to save the world at least once growing up? We’re going to overlook the slight magic addiction she had in later seasons, and remember her witchcraft as it was in seasons three and four!
7. Alex Fielding and Camryn Barnes in Twitches
Go Twitches! Go Twitches! Everyone knows there’s strength in numbers, especially when it comes to witching! That’s why we were 2x as jealous when we saw real-life twins Tia and Tamera Mowry uncover their supernatural origins in this Disney Channel favorite.
8. Glinda the Good Witch in The Wizard of Oz
Some people wanted to be Dorothy, but most of us really wanted to be Glinda. Not only did she get to wear that fabulous pink, poofy dress while getting to hold the most pretty wand we’d ever seen and travel around in a bubble… but she also got to be revered by all those cute lil’ Munchkins (who were only slightly terrifying to our young selves). The Wicked Witch of the West was a thing of our nightmares but Glinda made the whole movie not too scary.
9. The Halliwell Sisters on Charmed
Using their powers for good and protecting innocents, these sister-witches defined what it meant to be good witches. This trio fearlessly took on every demon and warlock imaginable in their world with savvy magic skills, ranging from telekinesis to the power of premonition. Whether the group was rounded out with Prue or Paige, we loved the Charmed Ones and their good (though albeit unlucky in love) hearts.
They kicked demon ass and looked damn good doing it! Respect.
10. The Sanderson Sisters in Hocus Pocus
The Sanderson sisters redefined what it meant to be bad witches. Sure, they weren’t exactly using their magics for good but Winifred, Sarah, and Mary formed one of the most enviable trios around. Because of their spectacular witching and singing skills, as well as their quote-worthy dialogue, we honestly have to watch this film at least once a week when October rolls around. Although they couldn’t stand their siblings sometimes (relatable), they weren’t afraid to be sassy — and they knew exactly how to make an entrance. Our heroes!
11. Kiki in Kiki’s Delivery Service
A witch who also has a side-hustle? Talk about a girl boss! It doesn’t get much cuter than this little anime girl who delivers packages on a broomstick with a tiny black cat by her side. Not only did Kiki have us wanting to be witch, she almost convinced us it was cool to get a part-time job. Almost.
12. Sally and Gillian Owens in Practical Magic
Sister witches strike again! Using a little bit of that good ol’ fashioned magic, two sisters who have descended from a long line of witches cope with pretty traumatic events in each other’s lives (like death and more death). And while we’re grateful that the curse in the sisters’ family that kills off the men around them doesn’t affect our own romances, we loved the bond between the two sisters through thick and thin.
14. Bonnie Bennett on The Vampire Diaries
Bonnie is the kind of person all our parents hope we grow up to be: important, loyal, kind and brave — while also compassionate, determined, patient, and powerful. A descendant of the Salem Witch Trials, Bonnie could’ve used her witchy abilities for evil, but instead, she always put others first. Even at the expense of her own life. Honestly, you couldn’t dream for a better friend than Bonnie and we totally wanted to be her.
15. Cassie Blake on The Secret Circle
The Secret Circle was a shortlived series based on the books written by the same author behind The Vampire Diaries but we still were pretty obsessed with Cassie Blake, played by Britt Robertson. After tragedy strikes, Cassie finds herself moving in with her grandmother in Chance Harbor, Washington — a town with a complex and mysterious past and a future that Cassie’s bound to be a part of. Finding herself in a coven of witches, Cassie’s life had dramatic love triangles and magical powers ready for her to discover — apart from all the tragedy, we totally wanted to be this witch.
15. Alex Russo on Wizards of Waverly Place
Okay, so technically Alex is a wizard not a witch, but nonetheless she’s a charmer. While some of the other witches on this list were years older and full of life experience, Alex was dealing with regular teenage angst just like the rest of us when we watched the show. Plus, she was played by our ultimate girl crush, Selena Gomez.
16. Hermoine Granger in Harry Potter
The series might have been named after her friend Harry, but it was Hermoine who stole the show. Clever, smart and sensible, she was a beast at spells and had us ready to enroll in the History of Hogwarts class STAT. Most importantly, Harry and Ron would be dead without her expertise. #GirlPower
17. Luna Lovegood in Harry Potter
Basically the complete opposite of Hermoine, though still talented, Luna was open-minded and had a distinct flair for fashion. She may have been a bit of an outcast at times, but her committment to being 100% unqiue was commendable. She made every unpopular girl feel like the coolest gal in the class and we could all stand to be a bit more Luna-esque.