‘Mary Poppins Returns’ Cast, Updates: Emily Blunt Reunites with ‘Into The Woods’ Co-star Meryl Streep; Julie Andrews, Dick Van Dyke Return?

‘Mary Poppins Returns’ reunites lead actress Emily Blunt with ‘Into The Woods’ and ‘The Devil Wears Prada’ co-star Meryl Streep. Streep is said to play Mary’s cousin who didn’t appear in the original film. Meanwhile, original cast members Julie Andrews and Dick Van Dyke may be returning to the new film in yet unspecified roles.

According to The Guardian, Streep is in talks to join Emily Blunt and Lin Manuel-Miranda in Disney’s upcoming sequel to the 1964 musical film ‘Mary Poppins’.

Sources suggested that Streep is set to portray the character Topsy Tartlet, Mary’s cousin by marriage. In P.L. Travers’ book ‘Mary Poppins Comes Back’, Topsy is a maid who marries Arthur Turvy and changes her name to Topsy Turvy. The character wasn’t featured in the original film from the 1960s that starred Julie Andrews and Dick Van Dyke.

The film would mark the third time Streep worked alongside Blunt for a full-feature film. The two were cast in 2006’s ‘The Devil Wears Prada’ and reunited in 2014’s ‘Into The Woods’.

Blunt is set to portray the titular magical nanny while Manuel-Miranda will play a street lamplighter named Jack who shares the similarities with Van Dyke’s Bert. According to Cinema Blend, the film will take place two decades after the events of the first film and is set in Depression-era London. It follows Mary as she returns to the household of adult Jane and Michael Banks and his children in order to help them find joy again in the wake of a tragedy.

Meanwhile, Andrews and Van Dyke are reportedly making their way back to the beloved franchise. According to the Daily Mail, the two are in talks to join the new cast in yet unspecified roles. However, a representative for Andrews said that no official discussions have been made of their possible involvement.

Andrews received an Academy Award as well as a Golden Globe Award for her performance as Mary Poppins while Van Dyke garnered a Golden Globe nomination for his role as Bert the chimney sweep.

‘Mary Poppins Returns’ is an upcoming live-action musical film directed by Ron Howard and written for the big screen by David Magee. It is produced under Walt Disney Pictures and Marc Platt Productions and scheduled to be released on December 25, 2018 in the United States.

The original film released on August 1964 earned $102.3 million in the domestic box office on a production budget of $6 million.