Emily Blunt takes over for Julie Andrews as the magical nanny Poppins in the official trailer for Disney’s musical sequel, Mary Poppins Returns. A movie 54 years in the making, Returns is the long awaited followup to the Mouse House’s beloved Oscar-winning 1964 adaptation of P.L. Travers’ Mary Poppins character.
Written by David Magee (Life of Pi) and directed by Rob Marshall (Chicago, Into the Woods), Mary Poppins Returns takes place around twenty-four years after the events of the original movie. In that time, the Banks family’s children Jane and Michael (now played by Emily Mortimer and Ben Whishaw) have not only grown up, but also followed in their parents’ footsteps by becoming a social activist and banker, respectively. When Michael and his own children are struck by a terrible tragedy, however, it’s up to Mary Poppins (Blunt) to return to Cherry Tree Lane and help them get their lives back on track.
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While Andrews declined to appear in the Mary Poppins sequel (in order to not distract from Blunt’s debut in the eponymous role), her former costar Dick Van Dyke plays a small role in the film. Other Mary Poppins Returns cast members include Lin-Manuel Miranda as Jack the lamp-lighter, Meryl Streep as Mary’s cousin Topsy Turvy, Angela Lansbury as Mary’s pal the Balloon Woman and Colin Firth as Michael’s penny-pinching boss, William Weatherall Wilkins. Take a look at the new trailer in the space below, followed by the official poster.
Unlike the Mary Poppins Returns teaser trailer released earlier this year, this new trailer dives fully into the sequel’s plot and offers a sneak peek of its various musical numbers. The original Mary Poppins famously included a sequence that combined live-action with 2D animation and, as this trailer reveals, the sequel will follow suit with a similar hybrid sequence of its own. Also featured here are some experts from the film’s original songs, as were written by Hairspray songwriting duo Marc Shaiman and Scott Wittman.
If nothing else, Mary Poppins Returns seems to have rebottled its predecessor’s sense of whimsey, as far as the visuals and general atmosphere are concerned. Blunt and Miranda appear equally comfortable as the new Mary Poppins and Jack (i.e. the replacement for Van Dyke’s cheery chimney sweep Bert from the original Mary Poppins), with the latter even paying homage to Van Dyke’s infamously – yet charmingly – unconvincing Cockney accent in the trailer. The actual film still has a ways to go before clearing the bar set by its predecessor, but these early signs are encouraging.
MORE: Mary Poppins Returns Has An Awesome Animated Sequence
Key Release Dates
Mary Poppins Returns
Release Date:2018-12-19
