New Mary Poppins Won’t Be a Reboot

It was recently announced that Disney is planning a new Mary Poppins movie. While it’s been confirmed that the film will be a musical, many people have been curious if this new Mary Poppins will be a sequel or a reboot. Director Rob Marshall set the record straight in an interview with Vulture.

“It is not a new Mary Poppins,” Marshall said. “P.L. Travers wrote eight books all together. They worked from the first book, and we are working from the other books, not touching the iconic brilliance of Mary Poppins.”

While the film won’t be a reboot, Marshall didn’t exactly say that it would be a sequel either. Rather, he explained, “This is an extension. I’m a huge fan of the original, and I’m a very good friend of Julie Andrews, and I hold it in such awe… There is all this new material — it was the Harry Potter of its time — and they were never turned into anything further than that adventure.”

Marshall went on to note that he hopes Andrews will be involved in the project. “She is a very dear friend, and if she could be involved in some way, it would be very special. I know she is very happy that we’re doing it and, after 50 years, feels that it is time.”

Most audiences are still split on a getting a new Mary Poppins movie, be it a reboot, a sequel, or an extension. If the rumors regarding Emily Blunt playing the magic nanny turn out to be true, though, we’d be happy enough to step in time.