Evan Rachel Wood "supported" Joey King playing Kylie Owens in Practical Magic 2

Evan Rachel Wood "supported" Joey King playing Kylie Owens in Practical Magic 2 - amid being "sad" to miss out on reprising the role.

The 27-year-old actress "had a lovely conversation" with 38-year-old Wood after the latter revealed she had approached producers about revisiting the character, the daughter of Sandra Bullock's Sally Owens, 28 years after the first film, only for them to reject her services.

Speaking to The Hollywood Reporter, King added: "I just was so appreciative of the support that she showed to me and to the rest of the cast.

"She is so talented and so beautiful, and she made this role so special when she was a young girl.

"I feel so grateful to be able to play Kylie at this age, but I love Evan so much, and I’m so appreciative of her kind words and the exchange that her and I shared."

The sequel, based on 74-year-old Alice Hoffman's final Practical Magic novel, The Book of Magic, also sees Maisie Williams, 29, take over as Kylie's sister Antonia from 36-year-old Alexandra Artip.

And director Susanne Bier, 66, explained the recasting came down to finding actors who would best fit the age of the characters.

She said: "It had to be a certain age group; in the story they’re just like literally out of college, and with Joey and Maisie it just felt completely right."

In July, Wood said she was "sad" not to be involved with Practical Magic 2, which sees Bullock, 62, and Nicole Kidman, 59, reprise their roles as witch sisters Sally and Gillian Owens.

She told Entertainment Tonight: "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.

"I’m sad that doesn’t get to exist, especially for the fans."

Wood thought the sequel does not follow Book of Magic.

She said: "I read the book, and it seems like they’re not following the book. I think in the book it would have made sense to bring me back; I think in the way they’re redoing it and approaching it, it didn’t make sense."

When Practical Magic 2 was first announced in June 2024, Wood "was not asked to come back" by producers.

Taking to her Instagram Stories, she penned: "I am getting asked about this a lot, so I’ll just clear it up now; I was not asked to come back and be in the #PracticalMagic sequel.

"I offered my services, even if it was one scene or one line. I was told they are re-casting.

"I am sorry to disappoint the fans. It was not in my control or my choice. I would have happily rejoined my sisters."

Producer Denise Di Novi, 70, said the sequel draws heavily from the source material and that the crew will "be respectful to the characters, story, and locations" from the original movie.

She told Entertainment Weekly: "I think (fans are) going to be very pleased. We're going to be very faithful. We're [aware of] how important those characters and that movie are to so many people. We're not going to reinvent the wheel.

"We're going to draw from Alice Hoffman's books, as the first movie did, and we're going to be true to the chronology of how many years later it is."