A Willy Wonka prequel movie is in the works

With the sad passing of Gene Wilder the other month, the world's imagination got a little less colourful, forcing everyone to dust off their old, dusty VHS (or most probably streaming it illegally, naughty naughty) of Willy Wonka & the Chocolate Factory.

And it looks like Hollywood has done the same, as it's just been announced that his most iconic role, Willy Wonka, is to get a prequel movie focusing on his early adventures.

Warner Bros. has recently acquired the rights to the story from the Roald Dahl estate, and is expected to focus on original material by Dahl. According to Variety, "the film will not be an origin tale, but a standalone movie focused on Wonka and his early adventures. It’s unknown who from the original book series, other than Wonka, will be involved in the project."

The big project looks to be in safe hands too, as it's being cared for by producer David Heyman, who has worked on the Harry Potter franchise and the upcoming Fantastic Beasts and Where to Find Them.

And novelist Simon Rich, who wrote for Saturday Night Live and worked on scripts for Inside Out and The Secret Life of Pets, is going to be taking charge of bringing the story to life. 

So if it's successful, expect to see a franchise in the works, and most probably re-rebooting Charlie & the Chocolate Factory.

Which'd be great, because that Johnny Depp version was like a fiery hot poker to the eyeballs.