Wonka is a musical prequel with Dune star Timothée Chalamet in the lead role playing the chocolatier himself. As we’ve seen the character of Willy Wonka being played by Gene Wilder and Johnny Depp in the past, we’ve seen different style variations of the whimsical inventor. One internet user pointed out that the Hot Summer Nights actor as Willy Wonka has an uncanny resemblance not to a previous Wonka, but to a Muppets Christmas Carol character that I now can’t unsee.
You may remember when the Muppets created one of the best A Christmas Carol adaptations in 1992? The internet user who pointed out on Twitter that Timothée Chalamet’s Willy Wonka looks just like the Great Gonzo when he played Charles Dickens certainly remembers! Now, you won’t be able to unsee this resemblance either as you take a look below.
stole his entire fit pic.twitter.com/EUVpzlM9NqJuly 12, 2023
Same brown top hat, red coat, and a similarly-designed blue and yellow scarf? Yep, now I’ll be picturing the Great Gonzo on Timothée Chalamet’s face going forward. This makes me wonder if costume designer Lindy Hemming really did take inspiration in The Muppet Christmas Carol. It’s interesting also how the red jacket look follows closely to Johnny Depp’s Wonka, yet it’s supposed to be a prequel to the original 1971 film. I’m not seeing any purple attire on this young chocolate man like Gene Wilder’s Wonka did. So, maybe Hemming was inspired by a Charles Dickens-type look and didn’t realize the similarities between the two looks.
When Timothée Chalamet’s Wonka look was first revealed, the internet lost its mind with thirst tweets. I love how fans go from seeing this young chocolatier as a sexy human being with those “undressing you” eyes to now being compared to a blue muppet. Despite the song-and-dance combos the Call Me By Your Name actor will perform in the movie, he’s no blue muppet. The 27-year-old will hold rank with Gene Wilder and Johnny Depp, who’ve played the Roald Dahl character in past screen adaptations. He’s said before that picking up the Willy Wonka mantle feels like it’s out of his league. At the same time, it’s helped him embrace the “weirder” parts of himself that he can bring to the character.
Another important thing to know about Wonka is that we’ll be given an exploration of how Willy Wonka eventually acquired his own chocolate factory. With co-stars Rowan Atkinson, Sally Hawkins, Keenan-Michael Key, and more, Wonka tells the story of a young man with big dreams to fill the tummies of the world with delectable candy they can’t find anywhere else. The first Wonka trailer introduces us to the magic and wonder of Willy Wonka’s journey with enemies ready to stop him. With at least seven new original songs, this movie musical could have the potential to give us catchy tunes we can’t get out of our heads as The Greatest Showman did for us in 2017.
Maybe for now, I can’t unsee the image of Gonzo on the face of Timothée Chalamet’s Willy Wonka. But, I’m sure all of that will change once I see the 2023 movie release hit theaters in full on December 15th.