Disney sets ‘Jungle Book’ ‘Mary Poppins’ and ‘Maleficent’ sequels
Disney announced its growing live-action reboot/remake schedule, claiming five more release dates for its upcoming projects and officially confirming several previously reported films, including The Jungle Book 2, Maleficent 2, Tim Burton’s Dumbo and more. Other projects included Cruella with Emma Stone, Jungle Cruise starring Dwayne Johnson, a Mary Poppins sequel, a new Nutcracker film, a live-action Tinkerbell film with Reese Witherspoon attached and more.
Disney now has a total of seven release dates set for various live-action projects, and though they have yet to formally attach specific titles to these dates, reports suggest that at least one of the new dates belongs to The Jungle Book sequel.
THR summarized the details, listing the following release dates for untitled films: July 28, 2017, April 6, 2018, August 3, 2018, December 25, 2018 and December 20, 2019.
These join previously set dates November 2, 2018 and November 2, 2019.
The Jungle Book 2 appears certain with Jon Favreau returning to direct. Given the extended production time on the first film (and the huge box office payoff), the sequel likely won’t be ready for theaters until 2018 or 2019.
Although Disney hasn’t announced specific titles for the above dates, they have confirmed the following projects currently in development:
- Cruella: Emma Stone stars as the famous villain from 101 Dalmatians. Screenplay by Kelly Marcel.
- A Wrinkle in Time: Ava DuVernay is directing from a screenplay by Frozen’s Jennifer Lee, based on Madeleine L’Engle’s novel.
- Jungle Cruise: Dwayne Johnson will star, with John Requa and Glenn Ficarra (Focus) scripting, based on the classic Disney World ride.
- Dumbo: Tim Burton will direct the live-action update of Disney’s animated classic from a script by Ehren Kruger (Transformers).
- Mary Poppins sequel: Emily Blunt and Hamilton’s Lin-Manuel Miranda will star in the untitled sequel, with Rob Marshall (Into the Woods) attached to direct.
- Maleficent 2: Angelina Jolie will reprise the role of the titular Sleeping Beauty villain in the sequel from screenwriter Linda Woolverton.
- The Nutcracker and the Four Realms: Lasse Hallstrom (The Hundred-Foot Journey) will direct a new take on the classic ballet, based on screenplay by newcomer Ashleigh Powell.
- Untitled Tinker Bell Project: Reese Witherspoon will play the iconic Peter Pan character in a film scripted by Victoria Strouse.
There are several live-action projects not mentioned here, including the Winnie the Pooh movie from screenwriter Alex Ross Perry, Mulan and Pinocchio and more.