MARY POPPINS RETURNS (2018) About The Director and Crew

ROB MARSHALL 's (Director/Producer) with EMILY BLUNT 's (Mary Poppins), EMILY MORTIMER (Jane Banks), MERYL STREEP (Cousin Topsy), and DICK VAN DYKE (Mr. Dawes, Jr.)

ROB MARSHALL 's (Director/Producer) films have been honored with a total of 26 Academy Award nominations - winning nine, including best picture. His most recent film, "Mary Poppins Returns," which he directed and produced, stars Emily Blunt and Lin-Manuel Miranda.

His directorial efforts include the Academy Award-winning films "Chicago" and "Memoirs of a Geisha." For his work on "Chicago," winner of six Oscars including best picture, Marshall received the Directors Guild of America Award; Oscar; Golden Globe and BAFTA nominations; the National Board of Review Award and the New York Film Critics' Online Circle Award, both for best directorial debut; as well as the American Choreography Award. His epic film, "Memoirs of a Geisha," was the winner of three Oscars, three BAFTA Awards and a Golden Globe. Marshall's film version of the musical "Nine" was nominated for four Academy Awards, five Golden Globes, 10 Critics Choice Awards, and a SAG Award for best ensemble cast. His film "Pirates of the Caribbean: On Stranger Tides," starring Johnny Depp and Penelope Cruz, went on to gross over $1 billion at the worldwide box office. Marshall's screen adaption of the Sondheim musical "Into the Woods," starring Meryl Streep, was nominated for three Oscars and three Golden Globes (including best picture), and was selected one of AFI's best films of the year.

Marshall executive produced, directed and choreographed the NBC television event "Tony Bennett: An American Classic." He won his second Directors Guild Award for this production as well as three Emmy Awards for direction, choreography and outstanding variety, music or comedy special. He directed and choreographed Disney/ABC's movie musical "Annie," which received 12 Emmy nominations and won the prestigious Peabody Award. For his work he received an Emmy and an American Choreography Award. He is the recipient of the Cinema Audio Society Filmmaker Award, as well as the Distinguished Collaborator Award for the Costume Designers Guild and the Hamilton Award.

A six-time Tony Award nominee and George Abbott Award winner, Marshall's stage work includes Broadway productions of: "Cabaret," "Little Me," "Victor/Victoria," "Damn Yankees," "She Loves Me," "Company" and "Kiss of the Spider Woman."

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Golden Globe-winning actress EMILY BLUNT 's (Mary Poppins) transformative ability and versatile performances make her one of the most in-demand actresses of today. Blunt recently starred in the Paramount/Platinum Dunes modern horror thriller, "A Quiet Place," opposite John Krasinski, who also wrote and directed the film. The film opened in April to $50 million and topped the $300-million mark at the worldwide box office. "A Quiet Place" is also critically acclaimed, earning a 95% rating on Rotten Tomatoes.

Blunt recently wrapped production on Disney's "Jungle Cruise," opposite Dwayne Johnson. The film, based on the classic theme park attraction, is directed by Jaume Collet-Serra and will be released in theatres in July, 2020.

In 2016, Blunt received critical acclaim for her portrayal of Rachel Watson, an alcoholic caught in the middle of a murder mystery, in the film adaptation of Paula Hawkins' best-selling novel, "The Girl on the Train." Her performance earned her nominations for SAG and BAFTA awards. Blunt also received rave reviews as FBI agent Kate Macer in Denis Villeneuve's "Sicario," which centers around the escalating war against drugs and premiered at the Cannes Film Festival to great acclaim. Earlier, Blunt earned a Golden Globe nomination and critical praise as the Baker's Wife in Rob Marshall's film adaptation of the musical "Into the Woods," which was released by Disney in December 2014.

Other notable films include: "The Huntsman: Winter's War," "Edge of Tomorrow," "Salmon Fishing in the Yemen," "Looper," "Your Sister's Sister," "Arthur Newman," "The Adjustment Bureau," "The Wolfman," "The Young Victoria," for which she received BAFTA and Golden Globe nominations, "Charlie Wilson's War," "Sunshine Cleaning," "The Devil Wears Prada," for which she received BAFTA and Golden Globe nominations and "My Summer of Love."

Blunt started her career at the 2002 Chichester Festival, where she played Juliet in a production of "Romeo and Juliet." Her London stage debut was a production of "The Royal Family," opposite Dame Judi Dench. In addition to her Golden Globe win for the BBC television movie "Gideon's Daughter," Blunt was nominated for four additional Golden Globe Awards as well two BAFTA and two British Independent Film Awards.

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A talented and charming actress, EMILY MORTIMER (Jane Banks) continues to challenge herself with a variety of roles that have audiences fully captivated by her onscreen presence.

Most recently, Mortimer starred in Isabel Coixet's "The Bookshop," opposite Bill Nighy and Patricia Clarkson. Based on the novel by Penelope Fitzgerald, the film centers on a middle-aged widow (Mortimer), who decides to open a bookshop against polite but ruthless local opposition in 1950s England. The critically acclaimed film was the recipient of three Goya Awards, including best film, best director and best adapted screenplay. Mortimer also appeared in Sally Potter's "The Party," opposite Timothy Spall, Kristin Scott Thomas and Patricia Clarkson, and in Stacy Cochran's "Write When You Get Work," which debuted at the 2018 SXSW Film Festival.

Previously, Mortimer was seen in the second season of "Doll & Em" on HBO, co-written by and costarring her real-life best friend Dolly Wells. The critically acclaimed six-episode series is a half-hour comedy with Emily and Dolly starring as slightly fictionalized versions of themselves. With their friendship having nearly ended in Season 1 after Emily hired Dolly to be her personal assistant in L.A., the two women looked to rekindle their mutual admiration in Season 2 by sequestering themselves in a lighthouse to write a play, which they hoped to produce on Broadway or, at least, off-Broadway. Having secured a venue through ballet legend Mikhail Baryshnikov, and with two Hollywood stars, Olivia Wilde and Evan Rachel Wood, agreeing to play the lead roles in the play, Doll and Em excitedly made preparations for the show. But, as always, life seemed to get in the way. Doll bristled while living in the basement of Em's family's brownstone, Em became sidetracked by an enticing film offer and Wood and Wilde began to lose faith in the project as the two creators started rewriting the play to reflect their growing frustrations with each other.

Throughout her career, Mortimer has worked with some of the most legendary film directors of our era, including Martin Scorsese and Woody Allen. Mortimer marked her second collaboration with Martin Scorsese, opposite Sacha Baron Cohen, in "Hugo," which received 11 Academy Award nominations and took home five. She had previously worked with Scorsese on the box-office-hit thriller "Shutter Island," opposite Leonardo DiCaprio. Mortimer also starred in one of Woody Allen's most beloved films of the last 10 years, "Match Point," for which she received glowing reviews.

Mortimer's break-out performance was in Nicole Holofcener's critically acclaimed "Lovely & Amazing," opposite Catherine Keener. The film won her rave reviews and an Independent Spirit Award for best supporting actress. She went on to star in David Mackenzie's "Young Adam," opposite Ewan McGregor and Tilda Swinton, and earned nominations for best British actress at the Empire Awards as well as best British actress in a supporting role at the London Film Critics Circle Awards. Following that, she starred opposite Ryan Gosling in the Oscar-nominated comedy "Lars and the Real Girl."

Among her numerous other film credits are: Ritesh Batra's "The Sense of an Ending"; Nic Mathieu's "Spectral"; Paolo Sorrentino's "Rio, eu te amo" ("Rio, I Love You"); Hisako Matsui's "Leonie"; Jesse Peretz' "Our Idiot Brother," opposite Paul Rudd, Elizabeth Banks and Zooey Deschanel; Brad Anderson's "Transsiberian," opposite Woody Harrelson and Ben Kingsley; David Mamet's "Redbelt"; "Dear Frankie," opposite Gerard Butler, which earned her a London Film Critics' Circle Award nomination; "City Island," opposite Andy Garcia; "Harry Brown," opposite Michael Caine; Stephen Fry's "Bright Young Things"; Kenneth Branagh's "Love's Labour's Lost"; Shekhar Kapur's "Elizabeth"; "The Ghost and the Darkness," with Michael Douglas and Val Kilmer; "Formula 51," with Samuel L. Jackson; Wes Craven's "Scream 3"; "The Kid," opposite Bruce Willis; and "The Pink Panther 1 and 2," opposite Steve Martin.

Mortimer lent her voice to the John Lasseter sequel "Cars 2," as the beautiful British spy car Holley Shiftwell, as well as to the character of young Sophie in Walt Disney Studios' English-language version of "Howl's Moving Castle," directed by the renowned Japanese animator Hayao Miyazaki. In addition to her film projects, Mortimer has starred in a range of television projects for the BBC and played the recurring role of Phoebe, a love interest for Alec Baldwin's character, during the 2007 season of the hit NBC series "30 Rock." Additional television credits include three seasons of HBO's "The Newsroom," created by Aaron Sorkin, and co-starring opposite Jeff Daniels.

On stage, Mortimer's theatre credits include her off-Broadway debut at the Atlantic Theater in the world premiere of Jez Butterworth's "Parlour Song," directed by Neil Pepe. In November 2007, Mortimer was invited by Eric Idle ("Monty Python") to take part in two special performances of his play, "What About Dick?," with a stellar cast that included Billy Connolly, Tim Curry, Eric Idle, Eddie Izzard and Tracey Ullman. Additional theatre credits include productions of "The Merchant of Venice" for the Lyceum Theatre and "The Lights" for the Royal Court.

On the production side, Mortimer and her husband, Alessandro Nivola, run King Bee Productions. Most recently, they premiered their latest film, "To Dust," at the 2018 Tribeca Film Festival. Starring Matthew Broderick and Geza Rohrig, the story follows Shmuel, a Hasidic cantor in upstate New York, distraught by the untimely death of his wife, as he struggles to find religious solace while secretly obsessing over how her body will decay.

The production company has several projects in development including the film "The Man Who Never Died," which it is producing in partnership with Blumhouse Productions. Based on the book of the same title by William Adler, the movie is a biopic about folk hero Joe Hill, whose trial and execution have been the cause of speculation for the last century. King Bee is also producing "Respectable," written and directed by Louis Mellis in partnership with producers Jim Wilson and Ted Hope. In addition, King Bee is developing a television series based on Kathy Lette's comic novel "The Boy Who Fell to Earth," about her relationship with her son who has Asperger's.

Mortimer was born in London, England, the daughter of famed writer Sir John Mortimer. She attended St. Paul's Girls' School in Hammersmith, London, and went on to study English and Russian at Oxford University. She currently lives in Brooklyn, New York, with her husband and their two children.

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For almost 40 years, MERYL STREEP (Cousin Topsy) has portrayed an astonishing array of characters in a career that has cut its own unique path from the theater through film and television.

Streep was educated in the New Jersey public school system through high school, graduated cum laude from Vassar College, and received her MFA with honors from Yale University in 1975. She began her professional life on the New York stage, where she quickly established her signature versatility and verve as an actor. Within three years of graduation, she made her Broadway debut, won an Emmy (for "Holocaust") and received her first Oscar nomination (for "The Deer Hunter"). She has won three Academy Awards and, in 2018, in a record that is unsurpassed, she earned a 21st Academy Award nomination for her role in "The Post." Her performance also earned her best actress nominations for the Golden Globes and Critics' Choice Awards.

Streep has pursued her interest in the environment through her work with Mothers and Others, a consumer advocacy group that she co-founded in 1989. M&O worked for 10 years to promote sustainable agriculture, establish new pesticide regulations, and ensure the availability of organic and sustainably grown local foods.

Streep also lends her efforts to Women for Women International, the Committee to Protect Journalists, Donor Direct Action, Women in the World Foundation, and Partners in Health.

She is a member of the American Academy of Arts and Letters, and has been accorded a Commandeur de L'Ordre des Arts et des Lettres by the French government and an honorary César. She received the Lifetime Achievement Award from the American Film Institute, a 2008 honor from the Film Society of Lincoln Center, and the 2010 National Medal of Arts from President Obama. In 2011, Streep received a Kennedy Center Honor, and in 2014 the Presidential Medal of Freedom. She holds honorary doctorates from Yale, Princeton, Harvard, Dartmouth, and Indiana universities, the University of New Hampshire, Lafayette, Middlebury, and the Barnard College medal.

Her husband, artist Don Gummer, and she are the parents of a son and three daughters.

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In an unparalleled career that has spanned more than seven decades and earned him five Emmys, a Tony, a GRAMMY, the SAG Lifetime Achievement Award, induction into in the Television Hall of Fame and the adoration of generations of fans, DICK VAN DYKE (Mr. Dawes, Jr.) remains one of the most popular and beloved performers in show business history. He's conquered Broadway, television, radio, movies, records, barbershop quartet and written several best-selling books. His list of professional achievements is even longer than the word he helped make part of the English language: Supercalifragilisticexpialidocious!

The eternally youthful 92-year-old was born on December 13, 1925, in West Plains, Missouri, and grew up in Danville, Illinois. During a stint in the Air Force he found keeping the spirits of his fellow soldiers aloft as valuable as high-flying combat, and he tirelessly performed for the troops and hosted a radio show called "Flight Time." His career in television began at the very start of that medium and he made his network debut in 1954. While trying to make his mark in television, in 1961 he starred in the blockbuster Broadway musical, "Bye Bye Birdie." Although he'd never danced onstage, his performance earned him standing ovations and Broadway's biggest honor: a Tony Award.

Signed to CBS, the most prestigious network of its day, he appeared on a variety of programs-from game shows to morning network news-but it was his eponymous 1961 sitcom, "The Dick Van Dyke Show," that solidified his superstar status. Created by Carl Reiner and co-starring Mary Tyler Moore, the show remains one of the most cherished and respected sitcoms of all time. During its phenomenally successful run, Van Dyke won three Emmys for outstanding lead actor in a comedy series and the series won outstanding comedy series in four of its six seasons.

During the show's run, he starred in the film version of "Bye Bye Birdie" and, in 1964, made cinema history opposite Julie Andrews in Walt Disney's international blockbuster "Mary Poppins." In what is still one of the most beloved films of all time, Van Dyke introduced the Oscar-winning song, "Chim Chim Cher-ee."

After "The Dick Van Dyke Show" voluntarily ended its run he starred in a number of films, notably 1968's "Chitty Chitty Bang Bang," 1969's "The Comic," 1990's "Dick Tracy" and, in the new millennium, the series of "Night at the Museum" films, opposite Ben Stiller.

The '70s and '80s kept him busy in a new sitcom, a variety show, several popular films (including the critically acclaimed TV movie, "The Morning After") and national tours in the musicals "The Music Man" and "Damn Yankees." He introduced the character of Dr. Mark Sloan in TV's "Jake and the Fatman." The character was so popular, it spun off into its own series, "Diagnosis: Murder," which ran weekly from 1993 to 2001 and returned as two TV movies in 2002. The show also featured his children, Barry and Stacy, his brother, Jerry and his grandchildren Carey, Shane, Wes and Taryn.

While he's always been in demand on the big and small screens, the new century showed his talents as author of two best-selling books: the memoir, "My Lucky Life In and Out of my Show Business" and "Keep Moving: And Other Tips and Truths About Aging."

In 2017, he joined his dear friend Carl Reiner and other legendary comedy nonagenarians, Mel Brooks and Norman Lear in the HBO documentary, "If You're Not in the Obit, Eat Breakfast." In this film he appeared with his wife, talented dancer Arlene Silver Van Dyke. Together the two have made You Tube videos singing and dancing together that have amassed millions of online hits around the world.

He loves singing with his a cappella harmony group, The Vantastiks, and dropped a new jazz quintet album in 2017, "Step Back in Time." Eternally youthful, impossibly talented, internationally adored, Dick Van Dyke has managed to amass a career of unmatched longevity while remaining the youngest man in Hollywood.