EARLIER: Another development concerning this sequel: Saoirse Ronan is currently being considered for a role. Nothing confirmed, but should a deal be finalized, it would mark a notable reunion with Chalamet, as both previously starred in Greta Gerwig’s “Lady Bird” and “Little Women.”
UPDATE: So, “Wonka 2” is happening, but we already kind of knew that. Back in November 2024, director Paul King had confirmed that the sequel is indeed in development, and that the script was about “half written” already.
We now have DanielRPK indicating that the sequel will be starting production this coming August, which means we’re certainly looking at a 2027 release, and in all likelihood, it will be the next movie Timothée Chalamet shoots, coming off “Marty Supreme,” for which he was Oscar-nominated.
Last year, Warner Bros. had a placeholder on its calendar—an “UNTITLED WB FAMILY SEQUEL” dated for December 17, 2027. That might have been “Wonka 2.” Since then, they’ve announced Andy Serkis’ “The Hunt for Gollum” as releasing on that date.
“Wonka,” a prequel to Roald Dahl’s 1964 novel “Charlie and the Chocolate Factory,” starred Chalamet as the eccentric candymaker. The ensemble cast also included Keegan-Michael Key, Olivia Colman, Sally Hawkins, Rowan Atkinson, and Hugh Grant as an Oompa-Loompa.
The film, released in December 2023, was a huge hit for Warner Bros, racking up $632M at the worldwide box office. It had a production budget of around $125M. Reviews were generally positive — 82% on Rotten Tomatoes, and 66 on Metacritic. It was audiences, more than critics, who fell for this crowd-pleasing film.
I really thought Chalamet’s next film would be the James Mangold–directed MotoGP movie, currently at Paramount. But maybe he’s decided the best way to move past the heavy, controversial promotion for “Marty Supreme”—which rubbed some, perhaps many, people the wrong way—is to return to another crowd-pleasing project, with no Oscar baggage attached.
As for King, the director of the first two “Paddington” movies, he’s attached to a Labubu film—if you can believe it—but that project still appears to be in the early stages of development. A “Wonka” sequel is, in all likelihood, what’s next for him.
It’s no wonder 20th Century decided to dump the movie during the last week of August—a place where movies are set up to die quietly before the fall movie season begins.