After more than half a century, Mary Poppins sequel Mary Poppins Returns is slowly but surely heading into production. And according to THR, the film has jut added a new cast member: Colin Firth.
‘Colin Firth, you say?’ you say? ‘But isn’t Mary Poppins Returns supposed to be a musical? Colin Firth can’t sing!’ Well, yes. But he’s playing the role of William Weatherall Wilkins, president of the Fidelity Fiduciary Bank, so we doubt he’ll be singing all that much. We’re hoping he’ll approach the character from a weird but comedic standpoint, like Dick Van Dyke did as Mr Dawes Senior, so that mediocre singing won’t be too much of a hurdle.
Firth also has previous experience working with mysterious nannies after his stint as Mr Brown in the Nanny McPhee films, so he’s basically set.
Mary Poppins Returns will be set 25 years after the original film, and features now-grown versions of Jane and Michael Banks, played by Emily Mortimer (Shutter Island) and Ben Whishaw (Skyfall) respectively, who are faced with difficult times when they experience a personal loss. Always on hand to assist those in need, Mary Poppins returns to help the Banks siblings through it.
As well as Whishaw and Mortimer, Firth will be joining Emily Blunt (The Edge Of Tomorrow) as Mary Poppins, Lin-Manuel Miranda (Hamilton) as Poppins’ street lamplighter friend Jack, and Meryl Streep (you know who she is), who Firth starred with in Mamma Mia!, as Poppins’ cousin Topsy.
Chicago and Into The Woods director Rob Marshall is helming the film, which will feature an original screenplay from David Magee based on childrens’ author PL Travers’ The Mary Poppins Stories. Marshall, John DeLuca and Marc Platt are producing.
Mary Poppins Returns will also feature an all-new score by Marc Shaiman and original songs by Shaiman and Scott Wittman, which Colin Firth will no doubt slay.
Mary Poppins Returns is in cinemas from 25 December 2018. Get all the latest fantasy news with every issue of SciFiNow.
“And now you’re working in a bank, a family man, a football fan…”
