Fans hoped to see Julie Andrews in Mary Poppins Returns. But she has the best reason for not making a cameo: She wants to pass the torch on to Emily Blunt.
While Mary Poppins fans can get excited to see Dick Van Dyke again in the sequel, Julie Andrews will not be appearing in Mary Poppins Returns.
“Julie was incredibly gracious, and we talked about it in a very general way but she made it clear right up front. She said, ‘This is Emily’s show, and I really want it to be Emily’s show. I don’t want it to be, ‘Oh, here comes that Mary Poppins.’ I don’t want that. I really want her to take this and run with it, because she will be brilliant,’” director Rob Marshall explained to Entertainment Weekly.
It’s a big deal that Andrews has chosen not to appear in Mary Poppins Returns. On the one hand, some fans think it just won’t be the same Mary Poppins without Andrews and they’re worried about why Andrews is distancing herself from the project. But it’s not because she doesn’t approve of the sequel. She’s giving her blessing to Emily Blunt and doesn’t want to overshadow her.
Andrews captivated audiences when she burst onto the screen as the practically perfect nanny in the original 1964 film. With her incredible charm and amazing voice, Andrews immediately won fans over during her feature film debut and even won the Oscar for Best Actress for the performance.
Getting Mary Poppins was a big win for Andrews. She had been passed over for My Fair Lady for Audrey Hepburn even though she originated the role on Broadway. But then she got Mary Poppins. At first, Andrews was going to turn down the role because she was pregnant, but Disney wanted her so much they said they would wait until she gave birth.
“I’m the lucky lady that was asked to do this wonderful movie,” Andrews previously said. “It’s one of those breaks in life, one of those breaks in your careers. I knew it then and I know it now.”
Andrews is Mary Poppins, so it feels weird not to have her in the sequel. Fans will inevitably be upset when she doesn’t show up in Mary Poppins Returns.
But her decision not to make a cameo actually shows how classy and kind Andrews is. Blunt has some big shoes to fill, but Andrews fully supports the sequel and thinks Blunt is the perfect pick. So rather than make a big spectacle of making an appearance in the sequel, Andrews wants to pass on the torch to Blunt. And now Blunt can make the role her own.
Blunt previously told Entertainment Weekly that Marshall told her Andrews thought it was “wonderful” Blunt was playing Mary Poppins. “I felt like I wanted to cry,” she said. “It was lovely to get her stamp of approval. That took the edge off it, for sure.”
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Mary Poppins Returns is scheduled to premiere on Dec. 25, 2018.