‘The Shape of Water’ actress, Octavia Spencer has entered negotiations to join Robert Zemeckis’ ‘The Witches’ remake.

Spencer would play the role of the grandmother of the main character Bruno. Spencer would join Anne Hathaway who has already been cast as the Grand High Witch, the role previously played by Angelica Houston in the 1990 classic.

It has been reported that the new version will be staying truer to the novel than the 1990 offering which was merely a loose adaptation. The film follows a seven-year-old boy (Bruno) who has a run-in with real-life witches.

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Zemeckis, as well as directing, will also pen the script. He will also serve as producer with his partner Jack Rapke through their banner ImageMovers, along with Alfonso Cuaron and Guillermo del Toro.

Roald Dahl’s classic children’s novel is set partly in Norway and partly in the United Kingdom, and features the experiences of a young British boy and his Norwegian grandmother in a world where child-hating societies of witches secretly exist in every country. The witches are all ruled by the extremely vicious and powerful Grand High Witch, who in the story has just arrived in England to organise her worst plot ever. But an elderly former witch hunter and her young grandson find out about the evil plan and now they must do everything to stop it and defeat the witches.

Spencer will next be seen in ‘Instant Family’, her upcoming projects include ‘Luce’, ‘Ma’ and voices the character of Dab-Dab in ‘The Voyage of Doctor Dolittle.