Who plays Billy in ‘Hocus Pocus?’

Spooky time is nigh, and it’s never too late to indulge in some high-quality treats to get us in the trickster mood. If you’re like us here at We Got This Covered, Hocus Pocus is surely on your annual re-watch list, and any new information is bound to pique your interest.

Whether it’s details about the cast members, the plot, or even the upcoming installment, Hocus Pocus is the franchise that keeps on giving. When the second film was confirmed, with the return of the fan-favorite spooky trio, many fans were eager to see the rest of the cast that would also be returning to Salem, alongside the many new faces joining the roster (thank you, queen Hannah Waddingham).

Among the familiar faces returning to the screen is William “Billy” Butcherson, whose appearance remains delightfully gruesome. Despite this, we still appreciate the talent behind the FX makeup, but here’s the actor behind the eerie Billy.

Who is Billy in Hocus Pocus and where have we seen him before?

If you’re a fan of all things spooky, it’s no surprise that you’ve recognized the bone structure and facial expressions behind Billy’s unsettling look. In both installments, Doug Jones portrayed the gentle zombie, though his two iterations were played by different actors entirely. A headless Billy is seen at some point in the story, played by Karyn Malchus, while a young and enamored Billy was portrayed by Austin J. Ryan.

However, the face we’re most accustomed to seeing is definitely Jones’. The 63-year-old actor from Indianapolis just has a knack for horror. No, I’m not insulting him; he just fits the genre like no other. You’ve likely seen him in Guillermo Del Toro’s underrated masterpiece Hellboy and all its iterations, or even the director’s Oscar-winning The Shape of Water, where Jones portrayed the odd yet fascinating amphibian man.

For those who don’t consider themselves to be cinephiles, the actor is also well-known in television. He appeared in Arrow, Teen Wolf, and Star Trek. Perhaps though, his most sought-after television performance of the past couple of years was as Baron Afanas in What We Do in the Shadows. In the show, Jones appears both as a mighty vampire supremacist, but also as a scorched and limbless creature.

Generally, you’ll grow accustomed to recognizing him beneath all the monster makeup as we just grow so used to seeing him, but his acting expertise simply jumps through the screen. It also helps that he’s a contortionist, capable of physically bringing all these monsters to life, Billy included.