Disney has released the first official photo of Emily Blunt as Mary Poppins from their upcoming Mary Poppins Returns and, well, she looks precisely how you’d expect the character to look. Her obscured face gives the picture a slight air of mystery, but the blue coat, pink hat and wonderful carpet bag is classic Poppins.
Blunt is playing the PL Travers character iconically portrayed by Julie Andrews in the 1964 musical classic, which combined live-action and animation to marvellous effect. She’ll be joined by Hamilton’s Lin-Manuel Miranda as lamp-lighter Jack, Emily Mortimer and Ben Whishaw playing the now adult Jane and Michael from the original film, respectively, Colin Firth as a banker, Julie Walters as the housekeeper, Angela Lansbury as ‘Balloon Lady’ and Meryl Streep as Poppins’ cousin Topsy. Fans will be pleased to hear that the indefatigable Dick van Dyke, who played Bert the Chimney Sweet in the original, will also be returning for a small role.
The sequel is set two decades after the original, in the midst of the Clutch Plague. This time, Poppins is tasked with raising the spirits of the adult Michael, morose after suffering an as-yet unspecified personal loss. Sensing misery, Poppins floats down from the sky, opens her magic carpet bag and proceeds to help the family “rediscover the joy and wonder missing in their lives.”
Mary Poppins Returns is set for release on Christmas Day 2018.
