‘Mary Poppins Returns’ plot revealed, Dick Van Dyke, Angela Lansbury confirmed
Disney’s Mary Poppins sequel, titled Mary Poppins Returns, starring Emily Blunt and Lin-Manuel Miranda, is now in production in London.
Blunt stars as the titular magical nanny with the Hamilton creator, Miranda, playing a lamplighter named Jack.
Directed by Rob Marshall, Mary Poppins Returns also stars Colin Firth, Emily Mortimer, Meryl Streep, Julie Walters and Ben Whishaw.
Additionally, Pixie Davies, Joel Dawson and Nathanael Saleh star as three new Banks children.
Dick Van Dyke, who played Bert in 1964’s Mary Poppins, stars as Mr. Dawes Jr., the chairman of Fidelity Fiduciary Bank, which is now run by William Weatherall Wilkins (Firth). Deadline also confirmed that Angela Lansbury has a role in the film as the Balloon Lady.
Mary Poppins Returns is being produced by John DeLuca (Chicago) and Marc Platt (La La Land) from a screenplay by Life of Pi‘s David Magee.
The new story will take place in 1930s London, with Poppins returning to help the Banks children from the first film, now fully grown and played by Whishaw and Mortimer.
Michael suffers a personal loss, the nanny Mary Poppins (Blunt) re-enters the lives of the Banks family, and, along with the optimistic street lamplighter Jack (Miranda), uses her magical skills to help the family rediscover the joy and wonder missing in their lives. Mary Poppins also introduces the children to a new assortment of colorful and whimsical characters, including her eccentric cousin, Topsy (Streep).
Miranda told The New York Times by phone from London: “I’m in the middle of a dream job dancing with Emily Blunt all day, and extremely grateful to be here.”
Mary Poppins Returns is scheduled for release Christmas Day 2018.