Mary Poppins Returns cast: Is Julie Andrews in new film? Is Dick Van Dyke in movie?

Mary Poppins Returns hits cinemas this Christmas, as Julie Andrews is replaced by Emily Blunt as the unconventional governess.

In the sequel, it is 1932 and the boy, Michael Banks, has grown up.

Helped by his sister Jane, Michael is bringing up children of his own in the absence of their mother.

The trailer was released on Tuesday and drops few clues to the plot of the musical but showcases a stellar cast of British acting talent.

The actor appearing in the sequel include Ben Whishaw, Colin Firth and Julie Walters.

Is Julie Andrews in new Mary Poppins?

Julie Andrews will not be returning to the new Mary Poppins film starring Emily Blunt in the title role.

Andrews won the 1965 Best Actress Oscar for her performance in the original film, set in 1910.

However, the 82-year-old actress is fully on board with the sequel and believes Blunt is a great match for the role.

Director Rob Marshall told Entertainment Weekly: “She had known it was works, then we said, ‘We’re doing it,’ and she said, ‘Oh, thank God.

“Then we said, ‘And we’re thinking of Emily Blunt,’ and just threw her hands up in the air and said yes. I think a lot of people feel that way about Emily’s work.”

He added: “Julie will always be, for me and for everybody, the most astonishing performance as Mary Poppins, winning the Oscar and bursting onto the scene so brilliantly.

“But Emily is the perfect person to carry the torch, and I know Julie feels the exact same way. She loves her.”

But she decided not to appear in the sequel out of respect to Blunt.

Marshall said: “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.”

Blunt said she was “filled with fear” of taking over the role from Andrews.

She said of taking the role: “I was filled with a mixture of two emotions – I was obviously very excited, but I was frozen with fear, because, well, Mary herself is so iconic, and Julie Andrews is so iconic, too.

“The world is fragile right now, and people need a film like this.

“It’s incredibly hopeful. I didn’t watch the original while shooting, but it’s seared into my memory – this idea of her as this incredibly unsentimental character who swept into their lives and made it all right.

“I found a great comfort in that as a child.”

Is Dick Van Dyke in the movie?

Andrews’ co-star Dick Van Dyke does make a cameo appearance in Mary Poppins Returns.

He will play the son to the original film’s villain Mr Dawes Sr, a role van Dyke had also played, along with the loveable chimney sweeper Bert in the 1964 film.

Mr Dawes Jr is the son of bank director Mr Dawes from the original film, who was played by Arthur Malet but passed away in 2013.

The movie was set for a Christmas Day release in 2018, but Disney has pushed it forward to December 19 in the US and December 21 in the UK.