In September, Disney announced plans to revive their beloved live-action and animated hybrid film, Mary Poppins.
Unsurprisingly, the news of a Mary Poppins sequel was met with mixed reactions and plenty of people asking: “Who on earth could replace Julie Andrews and Dick Van Dyke?”
Well, there might be hope for this project after all.
Variety is reporting that Emily Blunt is in talks to take on the role of the magical nanny, after working with directed Rob Marshall (who will be directing Mary Poppins) in Into the Woods.
Frankly, I never knew I wanted something so much or that casting could give me so much hope. Blunt has proven herself in a variety of films to be able to take on anything – musicals in the aforementioned Into the Woods, drama in Sicario, action in Edge of Tomorrow, and comedy in The Five-Year Engagement.
She can do it all, and if anyone can step into Julie Andrews’ shoes and make this iconic character their own, it’s Blunt.
Unfortunately, the report also notes that Blunt’s pregnancy might cause conflicts in scheduling, so here’s hoping the actress and studio can work something out.
As mentioned, this film will be a sequel and not a reboot, which eases tension on the project. Marshall explained to Vulture:
“It is not a new Mary Poppins…P.L. Travers wrote eight books all together. They worked from the first book, and we are working from the other books, not touching the iconic brilliance of Mary Poppins. This is an extension. I’m a huge fan of the original, and I’m a very good friend of Julie Andrews, and I hold it in such awe…There is all this new material — it was the Harry Potter of its time — and they were never turned into anything further than that adventure.”
As baffling as this project seemed at first, I’m starting to become more optimistic about it.
Now there’s the question of Bert and who should play the Cockney-accented variety character. My hopes are for Channing Tatum or Joseph Gordon-Levitt, two actors who have great energy and are proven song-and-dance men. Although someone did mention Blunt’s husband John Krasinski and that would just be adorable.
Mary Poppins is currently in pre-production and set to be directed by Rob Marshall.
How do you feel about this casting news? Are you as excited and hopeful as I am? Share your thoughts below!
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Source: Collider
