Warner Bros. is returning to a world of pure imagination, and continues with plans for a “Charlie and the Chocolate Factory” prelude, just titled “Wonka.”
The project has been in development for years, but has recently started to absorb steam again. The studio hopes to begin casting the film soon, with the goal of launching it theatrically on March 17, 2023.
David Heyman, whose CV includes the ‘Harry Potter’ franchise and ‘Paddington’, produces the film, based on a screenplay by Simon Rich. They have both been attached to the movie since 2016. Rich previously worked on ‘Saturday Night Live’ and wrote Seth Rogen’s latest film, ‘An American Pickle’, based on Rich’s New Yorker short story entitled ‘Sell Out’. “Paul King, who directed” Paddington “and its sequel, will put the reloading at the helm of affairs.
Based on Roald Dahl’s popular children’s book ‘Charlie and the Chocolate Factory’, the story follows a poor boy named Charlie, who is one of five young people who win a gold ticket to run the world-famous, yet very mysterious, chocolate factory that managed by Willy Wonka. Gene Wilder played the character in 1971 “Willy Wonka and the Chocolate Factory”. Johnny Depp later portrayed the famous chocolate in the 2005 reload by Tim Burton, “Charlie and the Chocolate Factory.” Depp’s version of the impeccable character was slightly darker and strongly suggested Wonka as a strange hermit with a particular dislike of children and added family ties. Burton’s version was a commercial success, earning $ 475 million at the worldwide box office.
The plot details for ‘Wonka’ have been heavily monitored, although the upcoming adaptation will focus on Willy Wonka’s earlier days before he manufactured his extensive house of sugarcane. In Burton’s narrative, Wonka’s father was a dentist who hated sweet treats, although it is unclear if this is a canon. It is also uncertain whether any other well-known characters, such as the hard-working Oompa Loompas, who later kept his sweet factory running, will appear in the film.
There is currently a healthy amount of content concentrating on the curious and eccentric confectionery. Netflix has two animated series developed based on the candy-covered world created by Mr. Wonka is popular. Taika Waititi, who directs “Thor: Ragnarok”, “Jojo Rabbit” and the upcoming “Thor: Love and Thunder”, is the writing, directing and executive producer of both Netflix projects.