‘Mary Poppins Returns’ Will Be A Treat For Fans Of The Original

On Saturday, Disney held a highly-anticipated panel at the D23 fan expo in Anaheim to talk about upcoming live action releases from their various studios, including Marvel and Lucasfilm. Fans were eager to find out more information about their favorite properties and franchises, and the Mouse did not disappoint.

One of the key trailers revealed during the panel was for Mary Poppins Returns, a new addition to what is now a Mary Poppins franchise, and starring Emily Blunt as the titular character, and co-stars Lin-Manuel Miranda, Maryl Streep, and Colin Firth, and will also feature Mary Poppins’ own Dick Van Dyke in a small role.

Blunt herself — who referred to the film as “a big old musical” — helped to introduce the very first footage from Mary Poppins Returns, which was met with riotous cheers and applause from the 8,000 fans or so in attendance in Hall D23. Even more impressive is that filming only wrapped a couple of weeks ago, and there is already a little teaser trailer put together for the fans’ enjoyment. The footage shown was accompanied by an ensemble playing the score live for the people in the exhibition hall.

If anyone was concerned about Mary Poppins Returns not being able to live up to the sequel, I don’t think there’s any reason to worry. It looks faithful as heck, with a whole lot of nods to the original, while seemingly including a whole bunch of new antics and adventures. There are kites, chimney sweeps, addled admirals, dancing on desks, and yes, 2-D animation.

Mary Poppins Returns is scheduled to open on Christmas Day, 2018.