Can Chalamet hold a candle to the wonderous performance of Gene Wilder?

Today is the 50th anniversary of Willy Wonka and the Chocolate Factory, the classic film adaptation of Roald Dahl’s story Charlie and the Chocolate Factory. The film is still beloved to this day, thanks in no small part to the incredible performance of the late Gene Wilder as the titular chocolatier. To celebrate the film’s anniversary, members of its cast got together to discuss the history of the film, the Johnny Depp remake, and the upcoming prequel starring Timothée Chalamet.

Original ‘Willy Wonka’ Stars Say Timothee Chalamet “Doesn’t Have to Be as Good” as Gene Wilder https://t.co/WqJmbXiMaS

— The Hollywood Reporter (@THR) June 29, 2021

“One nice thing for them is they don’t have to do a direct comparison because it’s a prequel rather than a remake,” Paris Themmen, who played Mike Teavee, said in a group virtual interview with Yahoo Entertainment. “So he doesn’t necessarily have to be as good as Gene was, which obviously is a hugely difficult thing to do.”

Willy Wonka & the Chocolate Factory, starring Gene Wilder, premiered in theaters 50 years ago today. pic.twitter.com/1TL6pZV2Qo

— Consequence (@consequence) June 30, 2021

“You can’t kill Wonka,” said Peter Ostrum, who played Charlie Bucket. “It just gets played over and over again, whether the original or the remake with Johnny Depp.”

“That brought attention back to our film. Kids saw Johnny Depp’s version, their parents said, ‘You need to see the original,’” Ostrum added. “Anything that talks about Wonka is good for the Wonka story. It’s a great story, and it needs to be retold, regardless of who’s producing it or who’s making it.”