Paramount Studios and Wolper agreed to the change. Roald Dahl wasn't happy. Gene Wilder was cast as Willy Wonka. Dahl had wanted Spike Milligan. It also became a musical, which Dahl also disliked.

Gene Wilder, the legendary comic actor of "Willy Wonka & the Chocolate Factory," "Young Frankenstein," and "Blazing Saddles," has died at age 83, according to The Associated Press. The two-time ...

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Willy Wonka and the Chocolate Factory star Peter Ostrum reportedly still receives royalty payments from his role as Charlie Bucket in the 1971 movie. The former actor, 67, was just 14 when he ...

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Peter Ostrum, Julie Dawn Cole, Michael Bollner and Paris Themmen shared their memories of Wonka's 'world of pure ... opens up to ET about stepping into Gene Wilder's shoes -- and whether he ...

Over the weekend, it was announced that Gene Wilder – the twinkle-eyed, softly-spoken star of films including Willy Wonka, Blazing Saddles and The Producers – had passed away aged 83.

The new "Wonka" movie is a mixed bag of sweets and duds. In this prequel to Roald Dahl's "Charlie and the Chocolate Factory," a young, driven Willy Wonka (Timothée Chalamet) embarks on his ...