Director Rob Marshall’s Mary Poppins Returns is a movie with a whole lot of whimsy and heart, featuring some great music and performances, but when I think back on the 2018 film, my brain immediately goes the brief role played by Dick Van Dyke. Having previously played Bert the chimney sweep and Mr. Dawes Sr. in the original Mary Poppins, the actor’s appearance in the film is delightful in and of itself – but it’s what he ends up doing in his turn that makes it one of the best cameos in recent memories, and it apparently had all of his castmates on set in tears.
Emily Blunt is currently doing the press circuit promoting her new 2025 movie The Smashing Machine with Dwayne Johnson, but she took a quick trip down memory lane recently during a recent interview with People. The actress looked back on her experience playing the role originally made famous by Julie Andrews, and her standout memory from the making of the movie was watching the then-93-year-old Dick Van Dyke perform a dance number (which reduced everyone to tears). Said Blunt,
read about the making of the movie and read about how he was able to pull of the choreography all by himself. It’s remarkable, and it’s wholly unsurprising that it got everyone on set to start crying.
Colin Firth was emotionally moved by the moment. Emily Blunt added:
In Mary Poppins Returns, Dick Van Dyke makes a special appearance as Mr. Dawes Jr. – and he is technically portraying his own son given that he played Mr. Dawes Sr. in Mary Poppins. He ends up saving the day, as he makes the decision to dismiss Colin Firth’s William Wilkins for corrupt practices and the Banks family saves their house.
If it’s been a minute since you last had the experience of watching Mary Poppins Returns – also featuring the lovely talents of Lin-Manuel Miranda, Ben Whishaw, Emily Mortimer, Julie Walters and Meryl Streep – the film is currently available to stream with a Disney+ subscription.