Keegan-Michael Key, the actor known best for making Key and Peele with Nope director Jordan Peele, plays an unannounced part in the project. In an interview with The Hollywood Reporter, he called it “wondrous and a little bit epic”, adding “it’s a nice, big, full, beautiful piece of art and Paul King, who directed it, is a delightful human being who has this wonderful, childlike heart.”

Of Timothée’s take on the role, he said: “There’s this wonderful effortlessness about how he plays Wonka, not to mention the fact that there’s this hopeful quality that he gives the character, a kind of indomitable quality that he’ll never quit, he’s always up for the next thing. He’s like, ‘OK, that didn’t work out? We’ll do this and we’ll try something else.” He added that Timmy “drips charisma and a wonderful confidence. He’s just a really delicious artist”.

“‘Is everybody ready?’ Chalamet’s Wonka says via voiceover in the opening moments which show a younger Wonka as he is a burgeoning chocolate maker,” claimed The Hollywood Reporter. “What follows appears to be a fantastical adventure filled with singing, dancing, and clashes with authorities in a quest to spread chocolate to the world.”

There’s more! In the footage, Timmy is heard singing: “You have never had chocolate like this!” bellows before, as The Hollywood Reporter put it: “he breaks out of a choreographed dance and heads down a pothole.” Honestly, it sounds truly unhinged. But here’s hoping it’s the weirdly wonderful kind, like Everything Everywhere All At Once, rather than Camila Cabello’s cursed Cinderella unhinged.

Anyway, with the wheels very much in motion, what do we know about Wonka’s plot, release date and cast? Here are your answers.

What’s the plot of Wonka?

While you’re surely well versed in the story of Roald Dahl’s classic novel, as well as the 1970s Hollywood classic adaptation, it’s worth noting that this Wonka movie will not be treading the same subject material. Instead, Wonka is set to be an origin story that tells the tale of the famed chocolatier during his younger years, including, apparently, when he first met the Oompa Loompas. It’s set to be a full scale musical, so expect high drama and, we imagine, comedy. As for the specifics? Well, we’ll have to wait a little while longer for those.

Who stars in Wonka?

Of course, we know by now that Timothée Chalamet has won the lead role in Wonka as its titular character, beating out the likes of Ezra Miller, Donald Glover and Tom Holland. He’s joined by an elaborate collection of British acting greats: Oscar-winner Olivia Colman and Mr Bean himself, Rowan Atkinson. The short clip shown at cinemacon showed that Oscar nominee Sally Hawkins will be playing the role of Wonka’s mum. Others involved include, of course, Keegan-Michael Key, relative newcomer Calah Lane, as well as Jim Carter and Rakhee Thakrar. The only stars with a role attached at present is Timotheé and Sally, but if that changes, we’ll let you know.

Who is the team behind it?

Wonka will be directed by Paul King, who made magic in the past with both the Paddington films and British sitcom The Mighty Boosh. King co-wrote the script with Simon Farnaby, who he worked with on Paddington 2 and who has written the screenplay for Robert Zemeckis’ forthcoming Pinocchio remake. Producing the whole thing is David Heyman, who is responsible for similar work on the Harry Potter series and Once Upon a Time… in Hollywood.

But if you were expecting nothing but candy-coloured landscapes from this chocolate factory origin tale, think again. Oscar nominated production designer Nathan Crowley has joined the project, and he’s best known for his brooding and dark work with Christopher Nolan on the Batman trilogy and Inception. Sinister Wonka movie musical? Looks like it.

Have their been other on-set spottings?

When Ms Omicron came for everybody’s ass in December 2021, including the whole set of Timothée Chalamet’s Wonka movie, production shut down just before Christmas last year before resuming at Oxford University at the beginning of 2022. When it did, die hard stans flocked to the set to catch a glimpse of TC in full regalia taking pictures and TikToks as they went.

Now we’ve seen a few other stars on set, like Calah Lane, we’re guessing Wonka could be a period piece. Tutors and students are hypothesising what all the fuss could be about.

There are even some queens out there literally chasing his car down the street at the end of the day.

Beyond the aforementioned ones, there was, of course, the OG Wonka set stalker. In October last year, famed Twitter queer @_artsartsarts stumbled upon the set of the movie in their own, rather uneventful town of Lyme Regis.

According to passers by and members of the crew, apparently Timmy was shooting in a green boat (could he be coming or going somewhere? Oompa Loompa land?!) and by a shed on the pier, which had been doused in fake snow. And then, alas! A few hours later, Timmy jumped on social media to reveal the first photo from the set. Art recognised it immediately.

Timothée Chalamet apparently ‘drips charisma’ in Wonka

His co-star in the movie Keegan-Michael Key offered up some high praise in a new interview.

What’s the plot of Wonka?

Who stars in Wonka?

Who is the team behind it?

Have their been other on-set spottings?

What is Wonka’s release date?

His co-star in the movie Keegan-Michael Key offered up some high praise in a new interview.

What’s the plot of Wonka?

Who stars in Wonka?

Who is the team behind it?

Have their been other on-set spottings?

What is Wonka’s release date?

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