How do you make a sequel to a beloved film musical that’s over 50 years old, and have it appeal to both fans of the original, and new audiences? By infusing it with the spirit of the source material, and tying it closely to the plot, of course. That seems to be the idea for Mary Poppins Returns, anyway, as the principle cast members have now confirmed.
Stars Emily Blunt, Emily Mortimer and Ben Whishaw have been speaking to Entertainment Weekly about their characters and the scenarios that they find themselves in. Specifically, it seems that Whishaw’s Michael is integral to the action of the story, as he tries to function after unexpectedly becoming a widower.
“He’s struggling to cope with looking after three children on his own, so he’s trying to be very upright and English and not betray any stress or insecurity, but actually, everything is going completely wrong for him.”
Emily Mortimer’s Jane – sibling of Michael – is a significant part of the tale, too, and remains a central influence on her troubled brother.
“She’s inherited the mantle of her mom, and she’s very socially conscious and wears trousers, which is quite a big thing for a 1930s girl. She lives alone in a little flat, and she’s given her life to the cause. She’s a looker-after of people, and so she’s desperately trying to cheer Michael up and get him back on track, but she’s kind of a child, too. She’s a little bit too ditzy and disorganized to be much help. She’s a very loving soul who gives herself to other people, but doesn’t think too much about herself. They’re both infantile in a way, like their parents, and in need of help themselves.”
Jane and Michael are, of course, the children of the Banks family which served as the centre-point of the first film. As youngsters in turn-of-the-century London, the two were feeling isolated and neglected by their father, while their mother worked hard within the suffragette movement. Mary Poppins, the magical nanny, then arrived and helped to heal the rifts in the family.
Mary Poppins Returns is set some 25 years later, and picks up with the Banks children now that they’re all grown up – with Michael having a family of his own. This family is thrust into crisis, however, and so Mary Poppins is back on the case. The important thing here, though, is that this new premise more closely reflects the inspiration behind the Mary Poppins character – as created by P.L Travers – which was depicted in the 2013 movie, Saving Mr. Banks.
If these snippets of information are anything to go by, it would seem that director Rob Marshall will have a giant success on his hands when Mary Poppins Returns on December 25th, 2018.
