It’s hard to remake a classic, but that’s never stopped Hollywood from trying before. The latest reboot is Wonka, reimagined for the third time by director Paul King with Timothée Chalamet as the titular magical chocolatier.
In this iteration of the Wonka universe, originally created by Roald Dahl with his 1964 children’s novel Charlie and the Chocolate Factory, we dive into the origin story of the eccentric candyman and dreammaker. The musical fantasy film has a full cast including Olivia Colman, Sally Hawkins, Keegan-Michael Key, Matthew Baynton, Matt Lucas, Natasha Rothwell and many more. It also, notably, features Hugh Grant as an orange-faced Oompa-Loompa; how Wonka met the Oompa-Loompas will be a central focus of the film.
In a new trailer for Wonka released on July 11th, Chalamet-as-Wonka says that he’s spent seven years traveling the world, perfecting his craft as an inventor and chocolatier. The imaginative young man, donning Wonka’s classic top hat, long maroon coat and cane, has a case of mysterious potions that he uses to make his signature magical treats, before being warned that it’s tough to make it selling chocolates as he must go up against the formidable “chocolate cartel.” But Wonka gains popularity as he successfully brings his otherworldly creations to life, and we see recreations of some of the iconic moments from the original 1971 Gene Wilder-starring film, like candy that makes you fly.
It’s not clear if Charlie Bucket, the boy who wins a golden ticket to tour Wonka’s factory, is in the story, though there seems to be a Bucket-esque character played by Calah Lane. In April at CinemaCon, Chalamet revealed that he swam in a real pool of melted chocolate during the film’s production. He also performs a total of seven musical numbers, which shouldn’t be a problem given his theatrical background.
The Dune actor told Vogue that he wanted to play Wonka because he appreciates that the film, which comes from the director of the critically-beloved Paddington, is an optimistic story for a younger crowd.
“To work on something that will have an uncynical young audience, that was just a big joy,” Chalamet said. “That’s why I was drawn to it. In a time and climate of intense political rhetoric, when there’s so much bad news all the time, this is hopefully going to be a piece of chocolate.”
In addition to the ‘70s Wilder classic, the Wonka story was also told with 2005’s Charlie and the Chocolate Factory, in which star Johnny Depp put an unsettling, sinister twist on the lead character.
Wonka hits theaters December 15, 2023. Watch the full trailer below:
