HOLLYWOOD, Calif., Feb. 18, 2016 (Gephardt Daily) — Emily Blunt is in talks to play Mary Poppins in the upcoming Disney sequel, according to The Hollywood Reporter.
The website reports Rob Marshall is directing the new untitled movie, which will be set some 20 years after the tale in the 1968 film starring Julie Andrews and Dick van Dyke.
The original “Mary Poppins” film was based largely on the first book, published in 1934. This new film will use elements from a few of P.L. Travers’ books. The last in the series was released in 1988.
Blunt’s name surfaced almost immediately as a top contender for the role when news of the project broke last September, but it’s only now that talks are underway in earnest, the Hollywood Reporter stated.
The story is set in Depression-era London and revolves around a now-grown Michael Banks, who has children of his own. In tough times, big sister Jane returns. Soon after, their beloved Mary Poppins comes back to help.
Blunt next stars with Chris Hemsworth in Universal’s “The Huntsman: The Winter’s War,” which opens April 22.
