Willy Wonka and the Chocolate Factory is a much beloved classic. As such, people tend to be protective of it. Disney created a remake of the movie in 2005, with Charlie and the Chocolate Factory, starring Johnny Depp. And now another new film is on the way. But this one aims to take a different approach.
According to Collider, the new movie is set to be a prequel. In an interview with David Heyman, the producer said that the new film would be an origin. According to him, the details aren’t entirely there, yet. They’re working on figuring out what the story is that they want to tell, and how best to tell it.
What makes Willy—when we find him at the chocolate factory doing the golden ticket, where is he before that? What leads him to that place where he’s locked himself away? It’s how does he get there? So we’re playing around with that.
Based on this, it can be deduced that the movie isn’t starting from the very beginning. Or at least it isn’t focusing on Wonka’s rise to prominence. It seems to actually focus more on the growing disillusionment that spurned him to the events of the original film. In a way it’s potentially similar to what Warner Bros. is aiming to do with the upcoming Joker origin film. It’s likely to not be quite as dark, of course. Most likely.
Heyman apparently wants Paul King (Paddington) to direct the movie. The script is being worked on by Simon Rich and the studio’s narrowed down the shortlist for the lead role. The list includes some very unexpected choices – Donald Glover, Ryan Gosling, and Ezra Miller. Two of those choices seem to almost suggest a split mind on the film’s direction. Ryan Gosling seems like a candidate based on vague resemblance to Gene Wilder. Meanwhile, Ezra Miller could pass for a younger version of Johnny Depp’s rendition of the character. Then there’s Donald Glover, who’s the real standout. But the movie isn’t due out until 2020, so there’s plenty of time to learn more.