Here’s some news to warm your cockles on these cold days – Paul King is reportedly in talks to direct a new Willy Wonka movie. Yes, new, as opposed to adapted or borrowed or remade. In 2016, producer David Herman revealed that the script will differ from the previous films and even Roald Dahl’s beloved children’s books.
“It’s challenging because you don’t have Dahl, you don’t have a Dahl book, and yet you have a Dahl character,” he told SlashFilm, “but I think there’s a lot in his character that suggests who he is and also where he might come from or what his childhood or his middle age might have been like.”
Little is known about the project at this point, but it appears to be an origin story about how Wonka came to procure such wonders as a river of chocolate and a posse of Oompa Loompas – think a candified Citizen Kane. The next question is, will anyone be able to live up to Gene Wilder’s iconic performance in the canonical 1971 musical? Ryan Gosling has apparently expressed interest in the role, but King may want to turn to his directory of British actors to cast his lead.
Before scoring huge success with the Paddington films, King was best known for directing the cult BBC comedy The Mighty Boosh. Noel Fielding would be a fairly left-field choice, but it’s not hard to imagine him donning the famous green slacks and top hat. Who would you like to see in the role? Let us know @LWLies
Published 14 Feb 2018
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