Remakes, re-envisionings, and reboots are common nowadays, to say the least. And many of the best include a sort of passing of the torch, from one actor to the next. But that will not be the case for Mary Poppins Returns, and this is one of those rare instances where that is actually a good thing!
Julie Andrews, who played the original Mary Poppins, will not be making a surprise appearance/cameo of any sort in Mary Poppins Returns. Though offered the chance, Andrews turned it down, not wanting to steal focus from Blunt’s performance. She has been extremely supportive of the sequel, though, and apparently loves the film just as much as we hope to!
-Emily Blunt
“She has seen the film and wrote the most beautiful email about it. It was so moving.”
Blunt, interestingly enough, made sure to avoid watching the original film during production, not wanting to let Andrew’s performance persuade her own. Make no mistake, Emily Blunt’s Mary Poppins promises to be just as magical and fantastic as Julie Andrews’, but her performance will be her own take on the character. This is less of a reboot and more of a sequel, which is why it’s excellent that, despite how much we’d love to see her in it, Julie Andrews will not appear.
Mary Poppins Returns Hits Theaters Tomorrow.