Los Angeles, US (BBN)-Even though the sound of it is something quite atrocious – or so naysayers may suggest – Disney is developing a new version of Mary Poppins, the much-loved 1964 film musical famous both for songs like Supercalifragilisticexpialidocious and Dick Van Dyke’s Cockney accent, renowned as one of the least convincing ever to make it on screen.
Variety reports that Rob Marshall, who directed the recent film version of the Stephen Sondheim musical Into the Woods, is set to make a new Mary Poppins film set 20 years after the original, reports The Guardian.
The new film will take some storylines from PL Travers’s books about the adventures of a nanny with magical powers and the children in her care.
The original film grossed $100m and won five Oscars, including the best actress prize for Julie Andrews, who played the title role.
It boasted a pioneering mixture of live action and animation, while songs including A Spoonful of Sugar and Chim Chim Cheree (which won an Academy award for best song) made it a durable children’s classic.
The songs in the new version will be written by Marc Shaiman and Scott Wittman, who won a Tony award for Hairspray.
Disney have enjoyed recent successes with live action versions of old animated films including Alice in Wonderland and Cinderella.
Marshall also has a record of commercial and critical success; Into the Woods made $199m worldwide and resulted in an Oscar nomination for Meryl Streep.
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