Who Will be the Next Wonka?
LOS ANGELES (Zap2it.com) – The original “Willy Wonka and the Chocolate Factory” introduced a generation of moviegoers to actor Gene Wilder who played the quirky lead character. He was kind and gentle with the Oompa Loompas, yet manic about his fizzy lifting drinks.
The adaptation of the Roald Dahl children’s book was directed by Mel Stuart in 1971 at the suggestion of his daughter. She loved the book so much that she decided her father should bring it to the screen.
The story takes place in a dreary nondescript town in Great Britain. An eccentric candy maker opens his factory to five lucky children who all find golden tickets in a Wonka bar. Little do they know, the child who shuns Mr. Slugworth will be rewarded with the factory.
Tim Burton (“Nightmare Before Christmas,” “Beetlejuice”) is set to direct his own version of the classic. Danny Elfman is set to score. “Charlie and the Chocolate Factory” begins filming next year in and around London; however a lead actor has yet to be announced.
Naturally, fans of the original are very opinionated about who could fill Wilder’s shoes. Some adamantly oppose a remake at all.
Early reports speculate that it is a horse race between three actors: Johnny Depp, Michael Keaton, and Christopher Walken. All have worked with Burton on previous projects.
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