Taika Waititi is about to bring us not one, but two takes on Charlie and the Chocolate Factory, Roald Dahl classic children’s novel. And according to The Hollywood Reporter, they’re both animated. If you’re an O.G. fan like myself, then you’re probably squealing with excitement. I’m a huge fan of the books and loved Willy Wonka & the Chocolate Factory with Gene Wilder (not os much the trippy, strange version with Johnny Depp years later). And I’m even bigger fan of Waititi, who’s work on stuff like Thor: Ragnarok, Jojo Rabbit and The Mandalorian have marked him as one of the most talented (and hardest working) directors in Hollywood.
I can’t imagine a better fit to bring this particular story to life. Not only will Waititi be truthful and honest to the spirit of the Dahl books and the original movie, but he will surely bring his own twist to it. This is Taika Waititi we’re talking about.
Anyway, the first show will be the story we all know and love, about Charlie finding the golden ticket and visiting Willy Wonka’s chocolate factory. Oh, how I love that movie.
The second show will be more focused on Wonka’s army of Oompa-Loompas. Per THR, the shows “will retain the quintessential spirit and tone of the original story, while building out the world and characters far beyond the pages of the Dahl book for the very first time.”
I’m excited to see this world expand. I always wanted to know more about the Oompa-Loompas — where they come from, and how Wonka managed to bring them to his factory. I know he sort of explains it in the movie, but you know there’s more.
Netflix’s VP of Original Animation Melissa Cobb is super excited to have Taika Waititi join the project (as am I!) and released a statement:
"I grew up reading Dahl stories and lived large parts of my young life in those magical worlds, so finding just the right creative partner to bring Willy Wonka, Charlie, and the Oompa-Loompas to life in animation was a daunting task…until Taika walked into the room. Then, it was really obvious. If Dahl had created a character of a filmmaker to adapt his work, I’m pretty sure he would have created Taika."
I 100% agree, it’s like Waititi was made for this.
Gideon Simeloff, commercial and entertainment director of the Roald Dahl Story Company, is also enthusiastic about Waititi’s involvement:
"In the words of Willy Wonka himself – we are ‘Delighted! Charmed! Overjoyed!’ with Taika’s appointment on this project. There is something undeniably Wonka-esque about Taika’s creative flair and inimitable sense of humor and we cannot think of anyone more perfectly suited to leading the creative charge on these first of their kind, feature quality Netflix shows."
I’m not sure how Waititi has the time to commit to these projects considering he’s got Thor: Love and Thunder to work on still. But maybe he’s just that good. I can’t wait to see what he does with them — it’s going to be “a little nonsense, now and then.”
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h/t SYFY Wire