Wonka is slated to hit theaters on March 17, 2023. Production will start soon – shooting is expected to begin within the next four months. It is known that the project is related to: Paul King ( Paddington ) on the director’s stool , Simon Rich as screenwriter and David Heyman ( Harry Potter and Fantastic Beasts series ) as producer. The film will be a prequel to Charlie and the Chocolate Factory, and will focus on the young Willie Wonka. In a 2019 interview, Heyman already revealed the general plot:
We’re still trying to figure out how to tell this story as it is. This is a prequel, not a sequel. What shaped Willy – when we find him in a chocolate factory planning an action with a golden ticket, where was he before then? What drives him to cut himself off from the outside world? (…) This is not a remake. Two completely different films have already been made. But it could be an origin story. (…) This is not a book by [Roald – ed. author] Dahl, and yet a Dahl figure. But I think there is something about him that shows who he is and where he comes from, and what his childhood and youth might have looked like. So this is what we research, we discuss about it.
Both the 1971 film and the 2005 film mention Wonka’s strange adventures, but they are not full stories, but only flashes of memories. Thanks to this, the upcoming production can surprise and amaze viewers with its story.
Main role to be cast
However, not only history is important here. You also need to find the right person who will breathe life into the crazy figure of a pastry chef. Earlier reports pointed to actors such as Ryan Gosling, Ezra Miller, and Donald Glover. However, recent rumors indicate that the age limit has been lowered.
As reported by Collider , there are currently two candidates for the role of Willy Wonka: Tom Holland and Timothée Chalamet. Both are recognizable in Hollywood: Holland mainly thanks to the role of Spider-Man in the Marvel Studios movies, and Chalamet thanks to Little Women and the upcoming science fiction production, Dune . It is difficult to say which of them would be more likely to be hired if Warner Bros. it actually considers their candidacy. Everything will depend on how Wonka is to be presented in the upcoming film and to whom it will be closer to.
And you, dear readers, who would you see in this role?
