Ben Whishaw May Join Rob Marshall’s ‘Mary Poppins Returns’
One of the live-actionfairy talesDisney has coming up isMary Poppins Returns. DirectorRob Marshall’s (Into the Woods) sequel to the 1964 filmwill starEmily Blunt, and she may soon get another co-star. ActorBen Whishaw, who was recently seen inThe LobsterandSpectre, may land a supporting role in the sequel.
Below, learn more about the possible Ben Whishaw Mary Poppins project.
The Hollywood Reporterclaims Whishaw is currently in talks for a role. If the actor comes aboardMary Poppins Returns, he’ll play Michael Banks all grown up. The sequel, which is written byDavid Magee(Life of Pi) and based onP.L. Travers' books, is set 20 years after the events ofRobert Stevenson’s film. Michael Banks plays a prominent role in the story. After he undergoes a personal loss, his sister Jane returns, and her arrival is followed by the return of Mary Poppins (Blunt). Once again, Mary, with the assistance of a lamplighter named Jack (HamiltonstarLin-Manuel Miranda), will lend a helping hand to the Banks family.
Principal photography onMary Poppins Returnscommences early next year. For the sequel,Marc Shaimanis composing a new score, and he’s writing original songs withScott Wittman. The film may be anInto the Woodsreunion sinceMerylStreepis close tosigning onto play Mary Poppins' cousin, Topsy, but her involvement isn’t set in stone yet.
Whishaw was last seen inA Hologram for the King, providing a brief appearance for hisCloud AtlasdirectorTom Tykwer. The actor doesn’t have many projects coming up that we know of, but he’ll soon have to do some voice work forPaddington 2. A year ago, he was also attached to play Freddie Mercury in the long-delayed biopic, but we haven’t heard any recent updates about his involvement in that biopic.
Here’s how Disney describesMary Poppins Returns’sstory:
Blunt has been cast as Mary Poppins and Miranda will play a new character, a street lamplighter named Jack. Drawing from the wealth of material in P.L. Travers' seven additional novels, the story will take place in Depression-era London (when the books were originally written) and follows a now-grown Jane and Michael Banks, who, along with Michael’s three children, are visited by the enigmatic Mary Poppins following a personal loss. Through her unique magical skills, and with the aid of her friend Jack, she helps the family rediscover the joy and wonder missing in their lives.
