Watching The Witches (2020) With the Full Cast
The 2020 adaptation of Roald Dahl's The Witches is a live-action/CGI hybrid directed by Robert Zemeckis. It's available on Max (formerly HBO Max) in the US, and on various streaming platforms depending on your region. The cast is fairly stacked, which is worth noting because some people go in expecting a kids' movie and get genuinely creeped out by Anne Hathaway's performance. Here's who plays whom in the film and where you can actually find it: Anne Hathaway as The Grand High Witch. She's the main antagonist, and honestly, she commits to the physical transformation in a way that made my nephew cover his eyes for about twenty minutes straight. The prosthetics and CGI blend is pretty seamless unless you're looking for it specifically.
Octavia Spencer as Miss Jennifer Harvel. She plays the head of the Orphan's Home, a supporting role but one of the few characters who retains her humanity throughout. Nuuma-Bule Helmi as Miss Irwin. Another staff member at the orphanage. Small part, doesn't do a whole lot narratively but adds to the institutional atmosphere. Chris Rock as Mr. Jenkins. He's the janitor at the orphanage. His role is minor but memorable, and he gets a few scene-stealing moments.
Stanley Figure as Bruno Wilson. He plays the young protagonist. A British child actor, and honestly one of the better ones. Carries the film's emotional weight without tipping into saccharine territory. Jade Niema Harris as Margaret Spivak. Another orphan, supporting role. Ahmed Black as Jake. Small part as one of the boys at the orphanage.
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Obiageli Liverpool as Mrs. Jenkins. Miss Jennifer's assistant, another supporting presence at the home. Hydia (voiced by Amy Adams) in a flashback sequence. It's a small voice role but Adams brings something distinct to it even in limited screen time. Most of the witch characters are voiced by a combination of voice actors and motion capture performers. Hathaway does her own voice, but several of the transformed witches use voice artists layered under the physical performance.
For streaming: Max is your primary option in the United States. Internationally, it's scattered across different platforms depending on regional licensing deals. It was also released on DVD and VOD, so physical copies and digital rentals are available through Amazon Prime Video, Apple TV, and Google Play. I'd recommend Max if you already have a subscription — the 4K HDR transfer is decent, though the color grading is pretty flat overall.
What Actually Works and What Doesn't
The film splits its time between a fairly standard orphanage drama and a full-on horror-adjacent witch story. The tonal whiplash is real, and it trips up a lot of first-time viewers. You're watching a kid deal with grief and institutional living for the first forty minutes, then suddenly everyone's turning into lizards and getting set on fire. It doesn't always land, but the practical effects work is genuinely strong for a family film. My main gripe with the production is the CGI integration on the Grand High Witch's transformations. In wide shots, it reads fine. But during close-ups when her face starts shifting, the blend between Hathaway's prosthetics and the digital enhancement has visible seams. I noticed it most during the banquet scene — the moment she removes her glasses and starts elongating. The practical makeup underneath is solid, but the digital augmentation over it creates a slight uncanny valley effect that pulls you out of the scene. If you're watching for the practical effects rather than the CGI, pay attention to the transformed witches in the hallway scene. Those miniatures and puppet work are done well. The film uses a mix of scale tricks and actual animatronics that hold up better than most modern family fare.
The runtime is about 1 hour 43 minutes. It moves at a reasonable clip, though the middle act drags slightly during the orphanage sequences before picking up once the Grand High Witch's plan kicks into gear. The final act in the hotel ballroom is where everything converges, and the editing there is tight enough that the budget limitations don't show as badly. For anyone trying to find the best way to watch it, the Max streaming version is the most accessible. The VOD rental prices run around $3.99 to $5.99 depending on the platform and whether it's SD or HD. I wouldn't bother with the physical disc unless you're a collector — the special features are minimal, mostly just a few behind-the-scenes shorts that don't add much beyond what you'd see in the theatrical trailers.
