EXCLUSIVE: Willy Wonka, the eccentric founder of the Wonka Chocolate Factory from Charlie and the Chocolate Factory, has been played by Gene Wilder, Johnny Depp and Timothée Chalamet on the big screen.
29.04.2024 - 00:19 / deadline.com
Josh O’Connor is currently starring in Luca Guadagnino’s Challengers and recently revealed what character he would love to play in the future.
In a recent interview, the actor said he is open to giving like to a “dark” version of the Willy Wonka character from Roal Dahl’s Charlie and the Chocolate Factory.
“I would love to play Willy Wonka,” O’Connor said in an interview with WSJ Magazine. “But like a dark Willy Wonka.”
O’Connor acknowledged that Timothée Chalamet starred in Wonka, an origin story to the Willy Wonka character, recently.
“But I would really like to play a story of darker version of him,” he added.
The Crown actor also noted that Gene Wilder’s version of the character from the 1971 film Willy Wonka and the Chocolate Factory “is very dark.”
“It’s not dark in a sinister way. I think he’s a really angry man,” he said. “These kids win a competition to go around the chocolate factory and they all seemingly disappear. I mean, it’s sort of mad and dark. So I think they’re just playing the truth of it.”
Apart from Wilder and Chalamet giving life to Willy Wonka, Johnny Depp also took a turn as the character in Tim Burton’s 2005 Charlie and the Chocolate Factory remake.
O’Connor is known for his roles in 2020’s Emma, Peaky Blinders, and The Crown, series in which he won at the Golden Globes and Primetime Emmys for portraying Charles, the Prince of Wales.
In Challengers, O’Connor stars as tennis player Patrick Zweig opposite Zendaya and Mike Faist.
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EXCLUSIVE: Willy Wonka, the eccentric founder of the Wonka Chocolate Factory from Charlie and the Chocolate Factory, has been played by Gene Wilder, Johnny Depp and Timothée Chalamet on the big screen.
The guys of Challengers have arrived at the 2024 Met Gala!
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his new film, “Challengers,” co-starring Zendaya and “West Side Story” star Mike Faist, he’s showing a whole new side of himself.O’Connor plays tennis pro Patrick, one-third of a love triangle with Tashi (Zendaya), a tennis pro poised for greatness before an injury relegates her to coaching, and Art (Faist), another well-to-do tennis pro. Tashi eventually marries Art, and Patrick comes back into their lives years later, kicking off tensions and connections, including a racy threesome.Reviews have described “Challengers” as sexy and steamy, something O’Connor is still surprised he was chosen for.“If you were making the movie, you wouldn’t cast me,” O’Connor recalled telling screenwriter Justin Kuritzkes in an interview for The Wall Street Journal.
Wall Street Journal, O’Connor – who stars in Challengers alongside Zendaya and Mike Faist – revealed that the one character he would like to play given the chance is a “darker version” of Willy Wonka.However, O’Connor was quick to note that Timothée Chalamet most recently had a turn as the iconic character: “I think probably, I’d love to play Willy Wonka, but like a dark Willy Wonka. I know they just made a Wonka film with Timothée Chalamet, but I would really like to play a sort of darker version of him.”Chalamet isn’t the only actor O’Connor noted to take on the mantle of Wonka.
SPOILER ALERT: This article contains details about Challengers.
Marc Malkin Senior Editor, Culture and Events SPOILER ALERT: This article contains plot details for “Challengers,” now playing in theaters. Josh O’Connor never had a churro until he shot “Challengers.” The British actor and his co-star Mike Faist enjoy the fried doughy treat in one of the film’s most suggestive scenes. In short, Patrick (O’Connor) is visiting his girlfriend Tashi (Zendaya) and his best friend Art (Faist) at Stanford when the two young men catch up in a cafeteria. They’re sitting face-to-face as they devour the churros.
Netflix recently released a new original series that everyone is talking about: Baby Reindeer. Based on a true story, it follows comedian and performer Richard Gadd's experience with a female stalker in his 20s - named Martha in the show - and how the trauma impacted his life. Now, the person accused of being the 'real life' Martha by internet sleuths has reportedly spoken out, declaring that she is the real 'victim'.
Josh O’Connor is already an Emmy-winning actor, but he’s never quite been in the spotlight in the way he is right now thanks to his role in Challengers.
A central scene in director Luca Guadagnino’s Challengers wasn’t in Justin Kuritzkes’ original script.
Tennis isn’t a contact sport but it can be brutal on the body, mind, emotions, and ego, especially at the elite pro level depicted so sharply in the ripping sports drama Challengers.A tennis movie with much more on its menu, the film, directed by Luca Guadagnino (Call Me By Your Name), credibly captures the fiercely combative pro tour, where, for those at the top, the payoff in riches and fame can be massive.For rising or journeyman players toiling on the sport’s minor league Challengers circuit, however, the struggle to train, travel, stay healthy and fit, and just pay bills bears few rewards greater than simply winning. And if you’re not winning, then what are you doing here?That’s the ice-cold attitude espoused by tennis diva Tashi Duncan, portrayed with impervious brashness by Zendaya.
Zendaya, Josh O’Connor and Mike Faist are talking Challengers.
Zendaya wonders why her kissing scenes get a lot of attention when she’s just doing her job.
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Despite winning his defamation trailer against his ex-wife Amber Heard following her allegations of domestic violence, actor Johnny Depp is still a persona non-grata in Hollywood, by and large. The actor hasn’t starred in anything significant since he was fired/resigned from the “Fantastic Beasts” franchise in 2020, but that hasn’t really stopped the less-discerning European film market from tapping his talents.
Alex Ritman Al Pacino and Dan Stevens have teamed up for exorcism horror film “The Ritual” from director David Midell. XYZ Films has acquired worldwide rights to the feature, with plans to release it theatrically in 2025 and arrange international distribution at the upcoming Cannes market. “The Ritual” was written by Midell and Enrico Natale and produced by Andrew Stevens, Mitchell Welch and Natale.
Johnny Depp has hit out at the Hollywood movie industry, saying they “threw me in the bin” to explain why he hasn’t worked within it for years.Back in 2022, Depp won a defamation case against ex-wife Amber Heard over a 2018 op-ed she wrote in The Washington Post. Two years prior, Depp lost a libel case against The Sun after it published an article that referred to him as a “wife beater” – claims Depp has always denied.The situation led to Depp being dropped from the Fantastic Beasts franchise and as such has not landed any Hollywood roles of late. The majority of his recent roles have been in European cinema, including his latest role as King Louis XV in Jeanne Du Barry, where he performs in French.Depp didn’t have many kinds words about Hollywood.
From almost all accounts, it seems like Italian filmmaker Luca Guadagnino has another hit on his hands with “Challengers,” a new tennis drama from MGM Studios that’s actually more of a love-triangle romance bundled into the sports genre. Starring Zendaya (Marvel’s “Spider-Man” franchise and the “Dune” series), Josh O’Connor (“Dr.
Johnny Depp on the historical drama film, Jeanne du Barry.Speaking with The Independent, the French director, writer and actor spoke about the film, in which she plays a sex worker in 18th century France, who becomes the mistress to King Louis XV, played by Depp.Maïwenn also opened up about the crew’s experience of working with the Pirates Of The Caribbean star.“I have to be honest. It’s difficult to shoot with him,” she shared.“All the crew were scared because he has a different kind of humour and we didn’t know if he was going to be on time, or if he was going to be OK to say his lines,” she continued.“I mean, even if he was there on set, on time, the crew were afraid of him.”She detailed Depp’s accent development for the movie, and how she was led to cut some of his dialogue, saying: “There was no time for rehearsals. I asked for time but, for whatever reason, he wasn’t available”.“He had a coach, but he couldn’t work with her beforehand,” she continued.
The Challengers stars are still hard at work at their press tour!