Paul Giamatti, Jason Schwartzman, and Ruth Wilson have joined the cast of Disney's Saving Mr. Banks for director John Lee Hancock (The Blind Side).

The story centers on Mary Poppins author P.L. Travers (Emma Thompson), who was courted for 14 years by Walt Disney (Tom Hanks) for the screen rights to her beloved novel, before she reluctantly agreed. After she didn't approve of the 1964 classic's animated sequences, she refused to sell another book to the studio.

Paul Giamatti is playing Ralph, P.L. Travers' chauffeur when she spends time in Los Angeles. Jason Schwartzman will portray Richard Morton Sherman, a songwriter who wrote a number of tunes for Disney classics such as Mary Poppins, The Jungle Book, and Chitty Chitty Bang Bang. Ruth Wilson is playing the author's mother in flashback scenes, along with Colin Farrell as P.L. Travers' father.

John Lee Hancock is directing from a screenplay by Kelly Marcel. No production schedule has been released.