Meryl Streep Could Join Emily Blunt & Lin-Manuel Miranda in Disney's 'Mary Poppins' Sequel!
Months after Disney confirmed the making of a Mary Poppins sequel starring Emily Blunt as the title character and Hamilton superstar creator Lin-Manuel Miranda in a new role, it seems more casting news are ahead for the return of everyone's favorite singing nanny: acting legend Meryl Streep could be joining the musical!
According to Variety, the three-time Oscar winner is currently in talks to join Mary Poppins Returns, the upcoming sequel to the classic that gave Julie Andrews her Oscar. It seems that Streep is in the run to play the supporting role of Topsy Turvy, Mary's cousin, a role that was absent from the 1964 classic.
The role of Topsy comes straight from author P.L. Travers, however: Today reports that the character, a maid, first appeared in the book Mary Comes Back.
Streep, arguably the most prestigious actress in cinema (and certainly the one with the most Oscar nods, 19 in total), is no stranger to the musical genre. Back in 2008, she starred in the jukebox ABBA musical Mamma Mia! and, most recently, she played the witch in Into the Woods, based on the Stephen Sondheim musical of the same name.
Mary Poppins Returns would reunite Streep with some of the team members from Into the Woods, including star Blunt, who played the baker's wife in the dark fairytale. Rob Marshall, who directed the Broadway adaptation as well as those of Chicago and Nine, is also set to helm the new Poppins film.
Originally thought to be a remake of the 1964 classic film that made Andrews an international superstar, it has been revealed that Mary Poppins Returns is actually an all-new story revolving around Mary, though based on Travers' creation. The movie will be set in the 1920s, when the book series was originally written, and it will follow the now-grown children from the 1964 film, Jane and Michael Banks, as they're visited by Mary Poppins once again, this time while they recover from a personal loss.
So far, only Blunt and Miranda have been officially named as part of the cast; the actor and Pulitzer Prize winner will be playing a new character called Jack, an English lamplighter, and the assumption so far is that he'll be the Dick Van Dyke to Blunt's Andrews -- but considering Miranda's strong background in rap, it wouldn't be shocking to see him using up his mad skills for the Disney movie.
Mary Poppins Returns will hit theaters on Dec. 25, 2018.