The third Paddington movie, Paddington in Peru, is a worthy addition to the franchise, with just as much humor and almost as much heart as its predecessors. Most of the cast members return to their roles, with one big exception: Sally Hawkins, who played family matriarch Mary Brown in the first two movies, decided this movie was “the right time” to depart the franchise.
Instead, Emily Mortimer (Cars 2, Mary Poppins Returns) takes up the Mary role. In this new film, she’s a sweet mother, grappling with the fact her children are about to leave the nest. At this point in the franchise, she doesn’t really need to be anything more. To her credit, Mortimer plays the role of a caring, sad mother quite well.
But the Mary Brown from the first two movies wasn’t just a kind-hearted mum: She was also the most emotionally open member of the Brown family, as well as brazen and unhinged enough to take in a talking bear she found at a train station. And that’s what made Hawkins absolutely perfect for the role.
Image: Studio Canal
Much like fish-man romancer Elisa Esposito in Guillermo del Toro’s The Shape of Water, the role Hawkins snagged an Academy Award nomination for, Mary Brown is utterly normal at first glance — until circumstances veer toward the abnormal, and she reveals herself as deeply weird.
Mary is an illustrator who works a lot on children’s books. It’s not outright said, but it’s implied that she’s the one who decorated the Browns’ family home. It’s so bright and colorful, just like the artfully eclectic outfits she wears. There’s a whole painted mural of a tree, twisting up the spiral staircase at the center of the house. Hawkins plays Mary perfectly as a grounded woman who also wears her eccentricities on her sleeve, to the point where she embarrasses her preteen daughter.
Mary is the bridge between the perfectly mundane (albeit disconnected and distant) Brown family and the wee bear they take in. She’s actually arguably even weirder than Paddington, who despite being an incredibly accident-prone bear, is very normal. While Paddington just wants to make marmalade sandwiches and remind his neighbors about their keys, Mary’s going around plucking up talking bears from train stations and breaking into people’s houses to find clues that will help solve the theft of a missing picture book.
She’s a bit spacey and a bit messy, and her eyes dart back and forth and light up when she snags onto something exciting. When she sits on her bed, arguing with her husband about Paddington’s latest mishap, she tucks her knees into her big sweater, a small physical detail that just really cements how much she’s in touch with her childlike side.
Image: Studio Canal
That version of Mary was absolutely necessary for the first two Paddington movies, where Paddington struggled to find his place in London, and found someone willing to take a chance on him. Mary has one hand extended to Paddington and the other to the greater community. If they can respect and trust this absolutely quirky woman, then they can make space in their hearts for the bear she loves.
By Paddington in Peru, Paddington has acclimated to England, so there’s no need to urge others to accept him. Mary Brown simply has to love Paddington and want the best for him, and Mortimer certainly does that well. But Hawkins brought a special magic to Mary, one that sparkled with whimsy and brought wonder to the mundane. She is the exact type of person to take the leap and embrace Paddington and all the delightful quirks he brings.
Paddington in Peru is in theaters now.